THOM ROSS
For over forty years, artist Thom Ross has been inspired by the American West. For Ross, “The American frontier is a place where history and myth collide. It’s full of powerful tales of good versus evil… stories which persist because it’s an eternal battle played out in the world even within our own selves.”
Packed with vibrant colors, bold brushstrokes and kinetic imagery, his paintings restore a liveliness and complexity to often oversimplified, stale depictions of frontier America. “Rather than paint in a realistic, photographic style, I‘d much rather suggest something of the eternal, mythical quality of the West.”
With an unmistakable style, Ross often paints his larger-than-life subjects on an equally impressive scale. A self-described “storyteller who paints,” Ross is eager to connect his subjects from the past with the audiences of today.
Hemmings Gallery is pleased to present a solo exhibition of his work in July. The Opening Night reception with the artist will be on July 11 from 5:30-7pm.
SARAH BIRD
Drawing on techniques from a background in realism but referencing the warped perspectives of Flemish Primitive paintings, Bird weaves landscape and still life painting together to create self-determined worlds.
Layering and rearranging motifs from the history of Western oil painting, Bird uses an old language to depict her contemporary life. Making reference to the surreal twists of Bosch, van Eyck and other Flemish Primitives, her paintings “weird” the landscape often forefronting humble personal objects like seashells, feathers and fruit set against deep mystifying horizons.
In her studio, there may be a few items on display from which she works but the actual painting lives in her mind and the result is pure imagination. For Bird, this means paintings that both “consider the enduring appeal of symbolism and world modeling… while still leaving room for genuine uncertainty and mystery.”
Hemmings Gallery is pleased to present a solo exhibition with Sarah Bird in August. The Opening Night reception with the artist will be on August 8 from 5:30-7pm.
Captions:
Desert Line Dance
by Thom Ross
acrylic on canvas
48” x 60”
Untitled 01
by Sarah Bird
Oil on panel
12” x 16”
Untitled 02
by Sarah Bird
oil on panel
24” x 18”
Hemmings Gallery
340 Walnut Ave. | Ketchum
208.254.1097
hemmingsgallery.com
