ARDEN + WHITE GALLERY presents Elysian Gardens, a two-artist show comprised of paintings, works on paper, and wire sculpture. Elysian Gardens is an ode to the divine and untouched scenery of a storied utopia. An artist highlight from the show comes from Laura Deems’ latest body of work features monochromatic pieces on layered canvas and paper that demonstrate her adept ability as a constructivist and painter in her first gallery show to date.
“This collection of mixed media paintings on canvas is an exploration of monochromatic, in which the dichotomies of strength and subtlety play out in composition and materials. As part of my larger body of work, these works continue my practice of textural dimensionality through the unconventional technique of marrying textile and paint. By freeing the pattern from a traditional set repeat, a storied composition is born. When reading the visual language of the canvas, the viewer is invited into dynamic looking, which at first pulls them into rich texture and subsequently forces them to step back to take in the work as a whole. Open yet discrete, the surface of each artwork holds intricacies in its smoothness.” —Laura Deems
Laura Deems is an abstract painter living in Birmingham, Alabama. Deems graduated from University of Georgia where she trained in dying fabrics, color theory, weaving, and screen-printing. The foundation of her artistic practice is derived from these methods. Mixing materials, colors, and techniques define the individual works' strong visual language. Each tool Deems’ uses create a visual logic of sinewy motifs that recall the flora and fauna of Polynesia.
