STEVE RIEDELL | Oval Paintings | WAITING ROOM
October 1 - November 3, 2023
I’m interested in paintings’ ability to renew and transform a three dimensional object. When I was a child I remember my father repainting our fence every few years, usually with the same color. This act which seemed routine in truth was remarkable in the way that it brought new life to an aging and used surface. The past life of the fence was sealed away, replaced by what appeared to be a clean slate, but upon closer inspection that history was evident in subtle ways as an underlying record of use.
In my paintings this idea of renewal manifests itself in two ways. Firstly, in the individual works, many of which are the result of alterations and reconstructions of preconceived forms. This process is most evident in areas where the paintings have been cut, rejoined and mended. Many are fragments of larger works. Secondly, the paintings are transformed in the way a previous one will influence the one that follows. This “procession” in the work (to borrow a term from Paul Thek), is important in the continual development of the paintings. I think of the body of work as an ongoing project where one painting opens the door for the next.
What I’m looking for in the individual works is a form that possesses its own essence, one that hasn’t been preconceived. Color plays an important role in my deciding when a painting has reached this point and can be considered resolved. Layers of oil paint and beeswax are brushed, scraped and rubbed onto the canvas before it is glued or stapled to a wooden armature. The layering of paint and beeswax continues after this point in a search for the right combination of built-up application of paint and surface modulation to fit the painting.
I’m interested in painting as a means of transition from one state of mind to another. Early on I was influenced by architectural elements such as a door, window or stair-railing and I think of painting as functioning in the same way. Music also has this capability and has been a source of inspiration for the work.
Steve Riedell was born in Inglewood, California in 1954. He studied art at Moorpark College, in Moorpark, California and Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. After leaving school he taught at Otis Parsons in Los Angeles for two years before moving to New York City to pursue his career in painting. While there he also taught at Pratt Institute School of Art in Brooklyn. He later left the city for a brief stay in Cincinnati, Ohio before settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1999 Steve had his first solo exhibition in Philadelphia at Larry Becker Contemporary Art, an experience he credits with being crucial in the further development of his work. In 2002 his work was included in ‘Beyond the Pale: Material Possibilities’, at the Neuberger Museum, Purchase , New York, curated by Dede Young. In 2007 Lawrence Carroll invited Steve to exhibit with him at Studio Trisorio in Italy. The exhibition, ‘ A Conversation Between Friends’, was presented in Rome And Naples. In 2011 he exhibited his Folded-Over Paintings at Larry Becker Contemporary Art for the first time, works which he is best known for. In 2013 he had a solo exhibition at Studio Trisorio in Naples, Italy; ‘Place and Memory’, that would then travel in part to Castello di Postignano in Umbria, Italy in 2014. Riedell is the recipient of The Elizabeth Grant from the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts in New York City in 1999, The Pollock / Krasner Grant in painting in 2000, and the PCA Grant from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts in 2001. He has been a finalist for both the Gottlieb Grant and the PEW Grant from the PEW Fellowship of the Arts in Philadelphia. Steve currently lives in Philadelphia and Milford, New Jersey where he maintains his primary studio..