Much of Bay Area Artist, Connie Goldman’s 1 work relates to upset equilibrium and the tension between stasis and flux. Her work is reductive and abstract yet deeply personal. As with equilibrium, it is not static but always on the brink of changing in one form or another.
As part of our Temporary Contemporary Fine Arts Exhibit Garden Court has introduced Connie Goldman’s abstracts to our Vermont Center Gallery. Combining contemporary alongside the antique reflect the juxtaposed styles of designers and collectors today. Our Fine Arts Exhibit is presented by Art Consultant, Laurie Ghielmetti Interior + Art 2.
Phasis Series
Phasis n. a manner, stage, or aspect of being; phase .
Phase n. (1) any of the major appearances or aspects in which a thing of varying modes or conditions manifests itself to the eye or mind (2) a stage in a process of change or development (3) the particular appearance presented by the moon or a planet at a given time.
Lunar Phase – Lunar phase refers to the appearance of the illuminated portion of the Moon as seen by an observer, (usually) on earth.
The multiple panels allow for time elapsed and changing points of view. These pieces speak to the constancy of change, the predictability of uncertainty. 3
The creative process for Ms Goldman often begins with sketches and words. Phasis began with sketches ( At point 1:25 in the video above ) and a rift on ‘Phases of the Moon’. A self-confessed ‘Geek’, Ms Goldman loves words. She will sit and read the dictionary. “Language, music, poetry”, she says,”has a certain meter to it, a regularity like our own heartbeat”. She’s also a “Quote Junkie” having collected thousands of them over the years. These quotes serve as a type of shortcut to express ideas and a personal point of view. Ms Goldman read a few of her favorite quotes to Blogger, Phillip J. Mellen of Ahtcast in a 2013 interview. 4
Robert Henri 5 (leading figure in the Ashcan Art Movement 6 of the early twentieth century): “The object isn’t to make art, It’s to be in that wonderful state which makes art inevitable” 7
Frank Lobdell 8: “Sometimes it’s not what one puts into a painting but rather what one leaves out that makes a compelling picture.” 9
Pearl Buck 10: “The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: a human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive. To them a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstacy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a God, and failure is death. Add to this cruelly delicate organism, the overpowering necessity to create, create, create, so that without the creating of music, or poetry, or books or buildings or of something of meaning, their very breath is cut off. They must create — must pour out creation. By some strange unknown urgency, they are not really alive unless they are creating. “ 11
Patti Smith 12: “In art and dream may you proceed with abandon. In life, may you proceed with balance and stealth.” 13
Marcel Proust 14 : “The real voyage of discovery consists in not seeking new landscapes but having new eyes.” 15
Anais Nin 16: “There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risks it took to blossom.” 17
Constantin Brâncuși 18 : on Abstraction. “When you see a fish, you don’t think of its scales, do you? You think of it’s speed, it’s floating, flashing body seen through the water. If I make fins and eyes and scales I would arrest its movement. Give it pattern or shape of reality. I just want the flash of the spirit. “ 19
Paul Cézanne 20: “Painting is damned difficult. You always think you’ve got it but you haven’t. I could paint for a hundred years, a thousand years, without stopping and I would still feel as though I knew nothing.” 21
Asked to apply three to five words to describe her work, Ms Goldman responded, “Quiet, understated, musical. My work is far-reaching, referencing other disciplines, language and music; the spaces that exist in music, haiku, proportion.” The creative process is never-ending. Of her work, Ms Goldman observes: “You can’t master it. You can’t completely master it.”
Artist Statement
Using a minimalist vocabulary and a reductive aesthetic that emphasizes the importance of space, rhythm, structure, and relations, I make works of art that are concrete and essential approximations of my own emotional and intellectual experiences. The work reflects my interests in architecture, music, science, sculpture, and painting as well as the threads of commonality that run between them.
The tendency or desire to gravitate toward unity and stability is in opposition to the urge toward independence, transition, and growth. My work evokes this same tension, the dynamic that underlies my own existence. I see each piece as being analogous to the rhythmic and contradictory forces of stasis and flux that propel my world toward both constancy and change.
- The Artist’s website: conniegoldman.com
- Twitter: Connie Goldman
- Facebook: Connie Goldman
The Artist’s social media portals
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Further readings and sources:
- The Artist’s website ↩
- Fine Arts Consultant, Laurie Ghielmetti Interior + Art ↩
- Phasis – the Artist’s website ↩
- Soundcloud Ahtcast Artist Interview with Connie Goldman ↩
- Robert Henri (June 24, 1865 – July 12, 1929) was an American painter and teacher ↩
- The Ashcan School or Ash Can School ↩
- Robert Henri Quotes Goodreads.com ↩
- Frank Lobdell (1921 – 2013) American painter, often associated with the Bay Area Figurative Movement and Bay Area Abstract Expressionism ↩
- Frank Lobdell: “Nothing Worth Anything Is Easy” ↩
- Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973), American writer and novelist ↩
- Pearl S. Buck Quotes Goodreads.com ↩
- Patricia Lee ‘Patti’ Smith (born December 30, 1946) American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist an influential component of the New York City seventies punk rock movement. ↩
- Rolling Stone: Patti Smith: Family Life, Recent Loss, and New Album ‘Gone Again’ by David Fricke, July 11, 1996. ↩
- Marcel Proust ( July 10, 1871 – November 18, 1922 ) French novelist, critic, and essayist ↩
- Marcel Proust Quotes Goodreads.com ↩
- Anaïs Nin ( February 21, 1903 – January 14, 1977 ) author ↩
- Anaïs Nin – Wikiquote ; see ‘disputed’ ↩
- Constantin Brâncuși ( February 19, 1876 – March 16, 1957 ) Romanian sculptor, painter and photographer; considered a pioneer of modernism, one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th-century, ‘patriarch of modern sculpture’ ↩
- Constantin Brancusi Quotes Goodreads.com ↩
- Paul Cézanne ( January 19, 1839 – October 22, 1906 ) French artist and Post-Impressionist painter ↩
- Paul Cézanne’s Quotes ↩