JEFFREY DELL Future Castles
Opening Reception: Friday, September 15th, 6 – 8 PM
On view through November 4th, 2017
Jeffrey Dell’s work has a generosity of space, imagination, and playfulness. Continuing his focus on the confluence of perception and desire, Future Castles draws upon pre-digital populist art histories ranging from ukiyo-e prints to US national park posters and sci-fi novel cover art. The forms in Dell’s screen prints linger between abstraction and realism, accommodating the graphic economy of Japanese print tradition and the visual seduction of trompe l’oeil. Dell is interested in the graphic shorthand that exists between image and symbol; it is a language that preserves mystery and reflection. The exploration of space is thorough and sundry in Dell’s work. Certainly, the use of starscapes and cloud-like forms evokes the cosmos, and the deft use of color and shading produces astonishing visual depth. Dell’s restraint leaves room for the viewer to forge their own personal associations between poetry, mysticism, and nostalgia.
Jeffrey Dell has headed the Printmaking department at Texas State University for 18 years and currently lives in San Marcos, TX. Recent exhibitions include the International Print Center of New York; The Print Center of Philadelpia; Rochester Contemporary Art Center; and Galleri Urbane, Dallas. Dell was commissioned by The LINE Hotel to produce two large unique editions for their newest location in Austin, TX, opening in 2018. Dell received his MFA from the University of New Mexico at Albuquerque.