JUSTIN AULD

SURREAL PAINTINGS

This set of paintings shows my experimentation in the realm of surreal and humorous work. The paintings span from my undergraduate work at RISD to the present. The later paintings ultimately served as stepping-stones that opened my eyes to think beyond the medium of paint. They allowed me to learn about myself and to clarify what I was trying to say with my art. I discovered that by abandoning painting (my greatest source of comfort and strength) I could step outside the limitation of what paint can communicate, and this freed my work.  By allowing me to approach projects by redirecting my focus on the material first, I could engage in more appropriate mediums (video, sculpture, installation, etc.)

The greatest discovery from this work was that the theme of humor is quite prevalent. It made me realize that the painters I lean towards embrace the same sensibility, John Currin, Mark Tansy, even Jeff Koons.