Last time ANIMAL checked-in with Chris “CYCLE” St. John, he was working on a series of wild animal-themed paintings that served as fitting metaphors for the ferociousness of the art world. Nearly a year later, the artist continues to evolve his style with his latest exhibit. Entitled, “Organic Distortions,” it features a body of work that incorporates the skills CYCLE mastered as a graffiti writer and meshes them with the techniques he’s refining as a fine artist. Here’s how Chelsea gallery ArtNowNY describes the work:
CYCLE’s new works are an exploration of form and color loosely based upon concepts adapted from his graffiti background. With graffiti lettering, in particular, he tried to apply the concepts of “exaggerated” and “distorted” forms alluding to “motion” and “experimentation with color and pattern.” This desire to investigate the shifting outline of both physical and hypothetical aspects of reality ultimately lead to a middle way between abstract and figurative art. Animals, fragments of images, reflections, animated shapes are all part of the same ongoing conversation that begins with an organic progression of the individual vision of the artist.
I have no idea what that last sentence means, but it sounds relevant — and more importantly, like something art world-types would eat up.
“Organic Distortions,” CYCLE, Jan 8 – Feb 7, ArtNowNY, NYC
(Photo: Aymann Ismail/ANIMALNewYork)
