I’m a fan of triptych art. I adore how together they form a story, and separately, they hold their distinctive entity. They can be suggestive of each other or form a sequential happening for one to follow through. They may signify different points in time or illustrate a wide scope of the same scene. Ultimately, they are like a beginning, middle, and end, which can but does not necessarily have to give you an ending at all.
Sam Friedman’s latest works at his “FANTASY” exhibition is a form of such art. With an abstract depiction including patterns and motifs that seem to move between the frames, his works hold a sense of progressiveness, making it unbounded by a beginning or an end.
Playing with the medium of paint across surfaces that invites infinite interpretation, his manifestation of forms can be appreciated by his roots in American Abstract Expressionist art, as well as his systematic application of repetition, which guides him with a groundwork that fosters a stream of freedom.
“I have had a long-time affinity for Rockaway Beach. Many of my landscapes reference this closeness I have with the beach’s natural landscape, the colour and movement and joy I’ve experienced there. During this time of uncertainty around the world I find being able to enjoy the same freedoms I experienced at Rockaway Beach to feel like an otherworldly dream, a fantasy.”
– Sam Friedman
Painted freehand, his goal is not perfection. Instead, he allows hints of imperfection to resist a manufactured finish. Not only is this an aesthetic choice, but also a representation of the organic and meditative process he goes through. Deliberately including natural and elemental qualities, Friedman strives to deliver a sense of flow and movement, which has not only enlightened his visual sensory of lines and colors but also questions the practice of painting itself.
WOAW Gallery & Library Street Collective Presents “FANTASY” Sam Friedman
Gallery period: 27th November 2020 – 10th December 2020
Opening Hours: 11am – 6pm (+8GMT)
Venue: WOAW Gallery, 5 Sun Street, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
