Nuebacher Shor Contemporary 2015
Toronto, ON
Byron Hodgins – Hollow Trees Don’t Speak to Hollow Men
March 13 to April 11th. 2015.
The title for Byron’s Hodgins’ first exhibition at NSC, Hollow Trees Don’t Speak to Hollow Men, is a reference to the surfaces of hollow trees. It was through observing the nature of trees that Hodgins came to see them as living vessels with murmuring power.
“I discovered that my expressive desire to paint parallels the expressive nature of trees. As trees struggle to grow in perfect balance in accordance with their nature, I’ve taken to finding my own sense of balance in our unnatural environment. Trees have a remarkable ability to seem weightless and balanced, even under harsh conditions; this balance parallels the unification of ideas and objects in the painting. For example, the weathered rough bark of trees becomes a virtual biography for expressive marks, and a virtual self-portrait for my struggle to express in paint, for a tree is the vital force and symbol of growth. Painting trees has enabled a conversation between the expressive possibilities of paint and fluidity of nature. My realization in painting trees was that instead of being separated from the subject, painting became the subject and the object for contemplation.” – Byron Hodgins, March 2015
About the Artist
Byron Hodgins received a B.F.A from Nova Scotia School of Art and Design, and lives and works in Toronto, Ontario. Hodgins has exhibited across Canada and Korea.
The artist’s work is inspired by an inward place and a direct observation of nature. To Hodgins, painting is a means of being sensitive to color as a means for expressing visual thought. A plein-air-painting practice has led him to experience what is typically considered to be commonplace as transformational, an opportunity to be present and focus on the self. He gravitates to forms – rough and unkempt – for his rich and vital sources for pure abstract painting.
