Artist uses layers and small works in BBAC exhibition

BIRMINGHAM — Detroit artist Ryan Standfest presents an exhibition at the Birmingham Bloomfield Arts Center that is filled with new pieces that come together to form a cohesive body of work. The exhibition, titled “As then there was no then, so there is none now,” will be displayed at the BBAC until Oct. 30.

 

Layering color to create meaning
Standfest was trained as a printmaker at the University of Iowa — a background that influences how he works with color. He said he used to avoid color because of the complexities that came along with using color in printmaking.

“I’ve been able to finally shed that and dive into color in a way that I’ve been meaning to for many years,” Standfest said.  “I think I always start from a very emotional place. In terms of the colors that I choose, there’s a tone and a mood that I’m trying to establish; they’re bright, but they’re also dark at the same time; they exist in some middle ground for me.”

In printmaking, layering is part of the process of building color. He carries this technique into his paintings.

“I don’t paint all the way to the edge. There will be one color, and then the next color sort of shrinks a little bit in, and then the next one shrinks a little bit in, so that when you see the edges, it’s like a geologic stratification of color, so you’re kind of seeing how the painting is built,” Standfest said.

There are 18 pieces total in the show — 13 paintings, three etchings and two colored pencil drawings. All of the pieces are small, which he explains is intentional because he hopes viewers will have the opportunity to spend some time with the pieces without interruption.

“It’s really showcasing the work with a lot of white space around it,” said Annie VanGelderen, the BBAC’s president and CEO. “You can really take your time going from one piece to the other and diving in.”

Standfest said he does not like to showcase the work with a narrative already locked in. Instead, he likes to give viewers “breathing room.” The titles of the work are not very specific, either.

“I think that there needs to be some room to dream with each of the paintings,” Standfest said.

 

See Standfest’s work
Standfest is also hosting an Artist Talk 5-6 p.m. Oct. 27 at the BBAC. For more details on the exhibition and Artist Talk, visit bbartcenter.org.