NICK LAMIA:
CLOUD, MOUNTAIN, VALLEY, SEA
March 8 - April 13, 2018
Nick Lamia, Cross-section, 2017, acrylic on paper, 50 x 45 inches
Jason McCoy Gallery is pleased to present Cloud, Mountain, Valley, Sea, an exhibition of new paintings, large works on paper, and a site-specific installation by New York based artist Nick Lamia.
Exploring concepts of space and various aspects of nature by means of abstraction, Lamia has long employed a language of opposites. His vibrant compositions are characterized by the interplay of translucent layers and opaque shapes, crisp lines and brushed fields, saturated and de-saturated hues, as well as a vocabulary derived from both geometry and biomorphism.
Continuing to focus on places where nature and society converge or where their co-dependence crystallizes, Lamia’s latest works reflect his thorough investigation of water as life’s most valuable and increasingly precious resource. “Our need for water transcends cultural, socio-economic and lifestyle divisions. Even time is no match for thirst: no matter the era in which one lives, the need for water links us all as humans. It is a common thread stitching together the fabric of life.”
Inspired by the four primary steps of the water cycle, Cloud, Mountain, Valley, Sea presents its content abstractly; aiming to provoke associations rather than providing a literal illustration. Meanwhile, Lamia’s site-specific installation, which encompasses the entirety of one of the two gallery spaces, marks the second such endeavor for Lamia at Jason McCoy. Whereas his first project entitled Coppice of 2012 had been inspired by a particular method of woodland management, this installation concentrates on the cloud portion of the water cycle. Employing works in different media, it especially involves a selection of cyanotypes, which like the cyclical atmospheric flow of water vapor, depend on solar radiation for their creation.
Nick Lamia lives and works in New York. Before receiving his MFA in painting from Boston University in 2000, he studied Environmental Science at U.C. Berkeley (B.A., 1994) and painting at the New York Studio School (1996-1998). Lamia was recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2003. Recent exhibitions include projects at the Bronx Museum of Arts, New York and the Maine Center for Contemporary Art. Recent residencies and fellowships include I-Park Foundation (2015); Marble House Project (2014), and Wave Hill Winter Workspace Residency (2012). In 2016, Lamia’s work was featured in a solo exhibition at the Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. This will be Nick Lamia’s third solo show with the gallery.
