May/June/July Art: Gregory Moore
Acrylic paintings on found objects
by Gregory Moore
ART PARTIES:
Friday May 13, 7:00-9:00 pm
Friday July 8, 7:00-9:00 pm
Gregory Moore’s art making process begins with rummaging through salvage yards and dumpsters in search of discarded metal objects to paint on. He seeks out objects that are unique in their configurations of stains, rust and damage and he lets those characteristics guide each painting, overlaying imagery that integrates and honors the truth of the found object instead of obscuring it. The imagery for this show is drawn from flowers and plants seen while exploring neighborhoods and hiking trails around the Bay Area.
I am interested in what manmade debris tells us about nature of “the outside.” I find pieces of rusted, dented metal and paint on them in a way that doesn’t obscure their original texture and color. Because these scraps have been rejected, they function as a reminder of our collective shadow, and because they undergo processes that our human bodies could not withstand, they bear witness to dramas and stories that go on outside of our daily awareness.
The subject matter I choose is largely informed by the detritus I start with. Often, I evoke or reimagine the scene where decaying trash might be found (a field of red clover, a cluster of thistles). When I began painting
on found objects, the images that emerged were weeds and wildflowers. Now I find myself letting the metal
guide me into more diverse imagery and an eagerness to be increasingly playful with color and imagination.
It is my hope that these works provoke thought about the richness and complexity of elements we might
otherwise ignore. -Gregory Moore
