Deep in her imagination, painter Alexis Trice dreams of a dog who continues to appear in her art. “One day,” she answered when I asked her if she has such a Borzoi in her life or longs to have one.
The resident of New York City has mounted an impressive tender exhibition of paintings on canvas, panel and shells as part of the residence of Miami Gallery KDR in the narrow long story short gallery on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.
Deep sea, swallow me is a fairy tale boxing world of sentimentality and memory. Trice uses the Metaphor of the Pearl, which is slowly forming in molluscs around an penetrating irritating, to create an effect in which these scenes seem to separate their own light. Her use of old master techniques, including an imprimatura layer, followed by a layer of grisaille, and then many glazes of color around which feels like a distant memory of pain or desire, generates these luminous images. Strong foreground focous points are framed by foggy scenes that are often dominated by seascapes with low horizon lines.
The namesake painting of the exhibition, although labeled as the slightly longer “deep sea, deep sea, swallow me” (2024), comes from Trice’s loving re -reading of Moby Dick. The aquatic performance of the velvety, old marine mammal also reflects the love of the artist for fountains and waterfalls, which we see in her other works. Time penetrates every centimeter of these images, while elements such as candles, tears and tongues suggest her passion for movement, time and touch.
Trice’s art is lyrical, illustrative and emotional. Like so much of the best painting produced today, it throws its meaning from just further than our grip in fertile soil that sprouts all kinds of associations.
There is something Cathartisch and Mystiek at her work, while she pops up an essence deep down and finds strength in that fish expedition. Or, as the narrator of Herman Melville says in his masterpiece: ‘Real power never hinders beauty or harmony, but it often gives it; And in everything hindering beautiful, power has a lot to do with the magic. ‘
Deep sea, swallow me Continue in the residence of KDR Gallery in Long Story Short Gallery (54th Henry Street, Lower East Side, Manhattan) until March 9. The exhibition was compiled by Katia David Rosenthal.
