Studio visit with Fran Shalom

Savoire Faire
2010
Oil on Wood
12" x 12'

 " I am a modernist abstract painter with a pop sensibility. My works balance the formal with the playful, paring down shapes and ideas into their most basic forms. It is a search for clarity and humor, as is evidenced by the shapes and colors in my paintings: cartoony, bright, blobby. But, like life itself, there is an undercurrent of conflict beneath the whimsy, as reflected in the tension and interaction between the shapes. Ultimately, it is important that the viewer becomes involved with the paintings, tempting them to stay long enough with the images to connect to a narrative that is at once ambiguous yet taps into the specifics and subtleties of their own lives."

 I was in Chelsea a few months ago at the Nancy Margolis Gallery seeing the Abstraction show. I particularity liked the color, quirkiness and ambiguity of Fran Shalom's work. I looked her up online and found out she lives 15 minutes from my studio so I arranged a visit. What a treat to have someone who speaks my language so close!

Her studio is up in the attic with plenty of light and room for her to work.

She is a collector so notice in many of the photos the shelves of "stuff".

I love this one above her painting wall. 

All of the work shown in this post is work in progress so don't get attached.

 

Here are her rolling tables with everything ready and close at hand. You can see her inspiraton wall to the left. Here is an upclose view:

 

 

Work in progress, oil on board

Works in progress, oil on board

This is a finished painting untitled at the moment (I love the relationship between the painting and the wire with the pink tags. )

We had some laughs

 

Everywhere I  looked I found echoing shapes and colors. Look at those funny creatures in the windows.

Work in progress, oil on board

 

Work in progress, oil on board

 More cards and images 

The bookshelves

She is a practicing Buddhist.

 

This is Jazzy's viewing chair. Notice the painting hanging up over the radiator. That is a painting by Brenda Goodman.

Troubled Waters #3 20 x 24 2009 Brenda Goodman

Untitled, 2010, Oil on Wood 12" x 12"

Fran has two shows coming up. 

A two person show, April 24th at The Painting Center, NYC

and a solo show, October 2012,

at the John Davis Gallery in Hudson, NY.