The exhibition also includes new drawings derived from imprints made with crumpled newspaper in liquid graphite, which suggest illusionistic representations of sand, snow, clouds, waves, and rocks. He notes that the mirroring it depictsthrough which the works physical subjects (as opposed to their reflections) are absentedhas parallels in Jacques Lacans concept of the mirror stage, and in the provocative notion of what Tansey calls a reductively purified art. Xing incorporates multiple visual modes and methods, and features an isometric perspective, making for a two-way picture (up or downright or left) depending on your spatial or political orientation. Tansey characterizes the inverted composition of Xing (pronounced crossing) as further emphasizing the expressive potential of reflection and shadow. Russian artist and designer Alexander Rodchenko, the individual subject of Resight (2019), lies on a rocky outcrop, training his camera on the morphing waves and eddies that swirl around him, and Xing shows two figures walking together on wet sand, their reflected and inverted images distorted by light and water. In Spinner (2015), a lush vase of flowers sits on a table in front of a restaurant wall that reflects a room filled with diners, while in Reverb (2017), a formally dressed man and woman converse in front of an array of portraits of other couples, their own images framed by a mirror in a haunting visual echo that alludes to the titles aural equivalent.
![light converse mirroring light converse mirroring](https://img-cdn1.cdnsbg.com/600/1/410/547157_1613464773456.jpg)
In the works on view, Tansey makes use of complex mirroring and reflection to explore the idea and painterly tradition of the picture-within-a-picture and its concomitant splitting and doubling of meaning and association. Tansey paints using a subtractive process, first priming the canvas with gesso, then painting one section at a time and removing the light passages while the paint is still fluid. In detailed monochromatic scenessince 2004 he has made particular use of bluehe distorts perspective and scale, emphasizing their sensate presence while restructuring our readings of historical period and spatial orientation.
![light converse mirroring light converse mirroring](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/newton-140112151133-phpapp02/95/newton-2-638.jpg)
Light converse mirroring archive#
Working within the stylistic conventions of figurative painting, Tansey pursues a fascination with history by layering imagery derived from an extensive archive of printed ephemera, collages, and sketches, often depicting sublime landscapes punctuated by figures or vessels. The exhibition at 980 Madison Avenue in New York will feature one new paintingXing (2021)three other recent paintings, and a selection of new drawings made in graphite mixed with oil or water. Gagosian will present an exhibition of paintings and drawings by Mark Tansey, representing more than six years of work.