URBAN LEGENDS

New Paintings by Carolyn Meyer

Bay Area Artist Carolyn Meyer not only captures the essence of San Francisco and New York with her impressionist strategies and capabilities to push oil impasto beyond all limits, she appears to hold these great metropolises for ransom. There is paint; sometimes less paint than usual, then more paint, and even more paint. When speaking about her latest work, Meyer appears to enjoy talking about her process as much as the act of painting.

“These new Cityscapes have given me a chance to try new color combinations and explore processes of creating texture, both visual and physical. At one point, the paint is thin and rough and primarily grey with a limited color palette. And then, I find myself reverting back to full on color portrayed in a heavier application.

Feelings and memories build from her initial composition into a deeper search for more expression not previously or fully realized. Meyer explains…“Besides an obvious obsession is the ability to try new painting procedures. It really comes down to this: At first, I am drawn to the physical beauty. Then, and here lies the real deal, I am trying to get closer to understanding the relationship between all that lies within the frame of what I see and the finished painting.”

Meyer’s latest works portray locations both new and familiar. “Suddenly I turn a corner, be it in San Francisco or New York, and there it is – one of those I have to paint this moments. But then there are those personal, repeating memories that contribute to more legendary points of view. Continuing to return to specific places gives me a chance to explore why I often repeat myself in a different expression.”

Amidst all the heights, distances and perspectives, and as fearless and soulful a painter Meyer can be, it is this small, 12”x12” painting titled New Store Front that brings Carolyn Meyer as up close and personal as we’ve seen her to date.