William Loveless: From the Abstract to the Concrete
When the glue dries on a William Loveless painting, it reveals an ink imprint of a past event. Loveless captures the moment his liquid color interacts with glue. Each artifact is a blossoming reaction frozen in time. His final paintings are collections of these single events that he refers to as "expansions".
My gratitude to Mr. Loveless for agreeing to this interview, as I am interested in how he views his work. Our discussion started because I wanted to make the distinction that Loveless is not dealing with the abstract. This interview gave me a deeper understanding of his intent while extending my ongoing interpretation of his work.
*(Scroll down for images and his solo exhibition at Michael Warren Contemporary.)
What were your painting approaches before you used glue?
WL: "Experimental, process and pattern oriented, conceptual."
When did you start working with glue? How soon after that was your approach focused?
WL: "1993. At first I was just dropping various inks and watercolors on an overall bed of glue and allowing them to interact with each other randomly. Then I became interested in their individual properties and began categorizing and combining them in a more organized fashion. Eventually "research" became the key.
Do you think that how the work is made is important?
"How the work is made is essential. It's a process with its own rigor, discipline, nomenclature and priorities. It's not only about the doing, but about the moment and environmental factors that shape it as well."
Do you show videos with the work?
"The most spectacular stage of my glue painting process is the one that's only seen by me - the interval between dropping the color within the wet cell and the completed “bloom” - the expansion itself.
Video has proved valuable in recording this process, but requires a special separate set-up to capture. Placing priority on this would be a different endeavor entirely from creating the actual paintings. A possible project for the future, but no, I'm not currently exhibiting any video to complement the work."
Do you see your work as going beyond the abstract?
WL:"Abstraction suggests a representational starting point from which a visual essence is extracted, so I would consider my work not so much “beyond” the abstract, as detached altogether from issues of representation and symbolism."
"If, however, the “abstract” can be considered a term for an intellectual construct awaiting physical manifestation then I'd say my work moves beyond abstraction in reverse - from the abstract to the concrete. Research indicates which combinations of materials will produce desired results, but it's only in the physical application that they can be truly known."
Aside from the collection of data, is your work a reflection of science?
WL: "My work resembles science the way representational art resembles reality. It has all the appearance of a scientific method, but its goals are merely aesthetic. This is not to say that my research isn't sincere, that my methods are not rigorous, that my approach is not practical in its own application. But since it falls under the category of "art" rather than "science" I'm allowed the flexibility of following my intuition and inspiration .
Do you see your expansions as microcosms of water rivulettes, fractals, and aerial topography?
WL: "Each expansion is a microcosm unto itself, with no references intended. The fact that they might resemble patterns we find elsewhere is coincidental to the nature of the physical reality we live in.
Does your audience read tangible imagery into your work, such as a jelly fish? Is your imagery based entirely on the chemicals and colors in the expansion process? Is representationalism not a concern?
WL: "It is only human to recognize resemblances. I find myself doing it as well. The work, of course, remains independent of all interpretation."
In terms of material realism, do you believe that the material creates its own reality?
WL: "My primary purpose is to set up a situation where the materials reveal themselves and express their own nature without interference. They are not forced to conform to the artist's wishes. They are liberated to reveal their own beauty."
Do you find this reality to be non-human..?pre or post human...?
WL: "The whole point of the exercise is that it is outside human control. It surprises."
Loveless witnesses an interaction of materials, rather than controlling it. He orchestrates simple components to form complex results. Loveless implements variables to breed infinite outcomes. The relationship between mutations engages the viewer in a broader language. While Loveless states that his goals are aesthetic, rather than scientific, his works do create a dialog that goes beyond pure aesthetics.
In my earlier blog essay: "Narrative Material Realism", I came to realize that William Loveless has a type of narrative that is based on the work's process. To me, his paintings create their own reality. He explains that his art is a "concrete" realization of material interactions. Loveless does not use outside references to define his imagery because his approach creates its own context.
"INTRODUCTIONS" - Opening May 15, 2014 -
Michael Warren Contemporary Art 760 Santa Fe Dr., Denver, Colorado
http://www.michaelwarrencontemporary.com/#!william-loveless/cd3v
http://www.michaelwarrencontemporary.com/#!william-loveless/cd3v
ARTIST INFO AND RECENT WORK:
New Titles, Dimensions, and Chemical Tests at:
Series Numbers:
Dimensions Range on Average from: 10"- 48" Rectangles
Past Works Below are Titled by Series Number
#1119, ink and watercolor suspended in polyvinyl resin (77 formulas) 24 × 36 " w
Single Expansion
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