Thoughts
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
I am frequently struck by the sheer beauty of the people, objects and scenes which surround us every day, directly and shockingly juxtaposed with the colossal inequity that abounds in the very same moments. The COLORS, the inescapable cornflower BLUE SKY of a July morning, the YELLOW & GOLD mist floating just above the atmosphere and filtering down upon the pavement, the RED of a perfect tomato, the RED of blood. The YELLOW & GOLD hovering over the homeless man lying on that same pavement. How can it be that these beautiful hues exist even in the most horrific of times? How can the faces of the most troubled people be so beautiful? These questions have always baffled me. Somewhere along the way, the realization that injustice, inequality and tragedy, ironically happen under the very same blue sky as birthday parties and barbecues, became crystalline to me. This disconnect began to have weight – legs, even. I suppose that these sentiments can be expressed most precisely for me in the paintings–that life is not all one thing, that actual aesthetic BEAUTY is not always wrapped into perfect moments. These seemingly simple, ordinary things – COLOR, SHAPE, FORM, MATTER. All of them inform me, in no uncertain terms, that there is a suggestion of destiny, a bigger picture– whispering constantly in my ear to create a footprint of sorts. So that the DISCOMFORT has a place to rest just beside the MAGIC. And so, humbly I attempt to somehow impart that which I see & experience to YOU, the viewer of my paintings. My hope is that the work will perhaps move you in some way – in ANY way. Perhaps my work will ignite a need to act even, as the objects I’m attempting to depict, have indeed, moved me to action. This kaleidoscope of irony, metaphor, and pure allegory, needs to be shared, needs to be exposed somehow. Or perhaps one needs to be exposed to IT, if even a modicum of anything on the canvas resonates with you, whether it be disconcerting, heart-breaking, pleasing, or simply familiar, then I suppose that I’ve done my job. Thank you for allowing me to share these very personal thoughts with you. ~
Toby Gotesman Schneier
I am frequently struck by the sheer beauty of the people, objects and scenes which surround us every day, directly and shockingly juxtaposed with the colossal inequity that abounds in the very same moments. The COLORS, the inescapable cornflower BLUE SKY of a July morning, the YELLOW & GOLD mist floating just above the atmosphere and filtering down upon the pavement, the RED of a perfect tomato, the RED of blood. The YELLOW & GOLD hovering over the homeless man lying on that same pavement. How can it be that these beautiful hues exist even in the most horrific of times? How can the faces of the most troubled people be so beautiful? These questions have always baffled me. Somewhere along the way, the realization that injustice, inequality and tragedy, ironically happen under the very same blue sky as birthday parties and barbecues, became crystalline to me. This disconnect began to have weight – legs, even. I suppose that these sentiments can be expressed most precisely for me in the paintings–that life is not all one thing, that actual aesthetic BEAUTY is not always wrapped into perfect moments. These seemingly simple, ordinary things – COLOR, SHAPE, FORM, MATTER. All of them inform me, in no uncertain terms, that there is a suggestion of destiny, a bigger picture– whispering constantly in my ear to create a footprint of sorts. So that the DISCOMFORT has a place to rest just beside the MAGIC. And so, humbly I attempt to somehow impart that which I see & experience to YOU, the viewer of my paintings. My hope is that the work will perhaps move you in some way – in ANY way. Perhaps my work will ignite a need to act even, as the objects I’m attempting to depict, have indeed, moved me to action. This kaleidoscope of irony, metaphor, and pure allegory, needs to be shared, needs to be exposed somehow. Or perhaps one needs to be exposed to IT, if even a modicum of anything on the canvas resonates with you, whether it be disconcerting, heart-breaking, pleasing, or simply familiar, then I suppose that I’ve done my job. Thank you for allowing me to share these very personal thoughts with you. ~
Toby Gotesman Schneier