Artist Portrait: Gail Vollrath by Jim Magner
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Gail Vollrath with her recent exhibit at Gallery Plan b |
Her work goes well beyond traditional materials and methods in developing and constructing each composition. She begins with oil colors, builds a “history on the surface,” and continues with china markers and tar, letting intuition take the lead, to reach the idea that moves in and out of the forms.
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Untitled (camp II), oil, tar on canvas, 14” x 13”, 2010 |
Is there a story hiding in the moving lines and animated shapes that combine to give dimension to the ideas? Maybe, but you have to discover your own story in the memory-sparking forms. Ultimately, it is not any one individual element but the over-all effect that creates the narrative.
Editor’s note: Gail Volrath exhibited last month at Gallery Plan b, 1530 14th St NW, see more of her work at www.gvolllrath.com
A Capitol Hill artist and writer, Jim can be reached at ArtandtheCity05@aol.com
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