|
|
|
| |
James Lavadour is known for his abstract landscapes inspired by mountainous northeastern Oregon where he has lived for most of his life. An avid hiker, Lavadour finds that this physical experience is converted into the kinetic act of painting. "At some point I made a connection between the ways walking conditioned my body movements and the way my body governed my hand when I painted. Links between muscle and memory, place and identity became the basis of my art." Lavadour's work reflects his intimate knowledge of the land and its dynamic permutations. Expressionistic vistas appear caught in the midst of spectacular transfiguration by the sudden force of the elements or position of the sun. Applying pigment, then scraping or wiping it away, the artist re-enacts nature's layering and erosive processes. "Raging currents in a drop of pigment pre-tell the mountains and rivers in a brush stroke. Light burns behind ridges after a simple horizontal scrape.... Trails dead end. New spaces open." Lavadour frequently combines small separately painted canvases that present multiple views of the constantly changing panorama. Recently he has introduced architectural shapes and streams of contrasting color that bleed across the terrain. Part Walla Walla Indian and a self-taught painter, Lavadour helped found the nonprofit Crow's Shadow Institute, which provides social, economic and educational opportunities to Native Americans through artistic development. Crow's Shadow Institute is located on the Umatilla Reservation where he grew up.
 |
 |
Cumberland Gallery, 4107 Hillsboro Circle, Nashville, TN 37215, 615/297-0296
Grover/Thurston Gallery, 309 Occidental Avenue South, Seattle, WA 98104, 206/223-0816
PDX Contemporary Art, 604 NW 12th Avenue, Portland, OR 97209, 503/222-0063
Gail Severn Gallery, 400 First Avenue North, Ketchum, ID 83340, 208/726-5079
>Visual Arts>2003/2004 Recipients>James Lavadour
©2008 Flintridge Foundation • http://www.flintridgefoundation.org
