Statement

Michael Abrams grew up in Rensselaer County in a home perched above the majestic greenery of the Hudson River Valley. He paid little attention to the majestic sunsets and scenic beauty of the area but the images of the sprawling fertile land has remained imprinted in Abrams’ mind. These views became deeply ingrained in his subconscious and profoundly influences the way he sees the world.

Although nature forms the basis for his paintings they are a personalized vision in which he is revisiting landscape painting within the context of contemporary art. These idealized landscapes set the stage and give the perception of something otherworldly. They exist entirely in the mental space of nostalgic recall. The viewer is introduced to the picture plane as if they are hovering slightly above ground, adding to the detachment of reality.

There is a dissipation of substance into atmosphere. Emphasizing misty ambiance over earthly terrain. Only a hint of human presence exists, with a suggestion of roadways and distant fields.

And while the subject matter is a recognizable, natural world, these are studio paintings in which the process takes precedent over the tradition of mere documentation. The paintings are rendered with a layering of glazes from semitransparent to opaque creating an atmospheric and luminous quality. The glazes are built up over time, taking the image from an initial stage influenced by images of nature derived from various travels to an idealized form of personal invention.

Bio

Michael J. Abrams was born in 1957.

Education

1980

B.A. Elmira College, Elmira, NY in Studio Art and Art History

One-Person Exhibitions

2009

Sears Peyton Gallery, New York, NY/Los Angeles, CA

2007

Sears Peyton Gallery, New York, NY

2004

Sears Peyton Gallery, New York, NY

2000

Sears Peyton Gallery, New York, NY

1997

The Golden Hour, Radix Gallery, New York, NY

1995

The Elusive Terrain, K & E Gallery, New York, NY

1993

Gallery 30, New York, NY

1991

Gallery 30, New York, NY

1990

Trabia Gallery, New York, NY

Seibu, Tokyo, Japan

1989

Trabia-MacAfee Gallery, New York, NY

1986

Chapel, M-13 Gallery, New York, NY

1985

Mythologies, Wolff Gallery, New York, NY

1982

William Frances Gallery, Providence, RI

1980

Goldwyn Smith Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY

1979

Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, NY

Group Exhibitions

2004

Bennett Galleries, Knoxville, TN

Laura Erlich Gallery, Marblehead, Mass.

2002

Sears Peyton Gallery, New York, NY

2000

The Contemporary Landscape, Forrest Scott Gallery, Millburn, NJ

1999

Forrest Scott Gallery, Millburn, NJ

1997

One Twentieth of an Acre, Gallery A, Chicago, IL

1996

Screen Memories, K & E Gallery, New York, NY

1995

Pulp Fictions: Works on Paper, Gallery A, Chicago, IL

The Nature of Landscape, The Gallery At Hastings on Hudson, NY

Selections, K & E Gallery, New York, NY

1994

Bennett Galleries, Knoxville, TN

Image in Paint , K & E Gallery, New York, NY

Interpretations of the Landscape, Virginia Miller Galleries,Coral Gables, FL

Transition, Gallery A, Chicago, IL

1993

Whimsical, Bennett Galleries, Knoxville, TN

1992

Virginia Miller Galleries, Coral Gables FL

_Bennett Galleries, Knoxville, TN

New Landscapes, Gallery 30, New York, NY

Apocalypse and Resurrection, Gallery 30, New York, NY

1991

Paper Work, Gallery 30, New York, NY

Lyric:Uses of Beauty at the End of the Century, White Columns, New York, NY

1987

M-13 Gallery, New York, NY

The Gallery at Hastings-on-Hudson, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY

1986

City Without Walls, Newark, NJ

1985

Andre Zarre Gallery, New York, NY

Tower Gallery, Southampton, NY

57th Street Between A & D, Holly Solomon Gallery, New York, NY

1984

Virginia Beach Center for the Arts, Virginia Beach, VA

Wolff Gallery, New York, NY

Zellermayer Gallery,(Exhibition curated by Regina Trapp and Michael Kohn), Berlin, Germany

Stroud Foundation, Philadelphia, PA

Soho Center for Visual Artists, New York, NY

1983

New Work, New York, Newcastle Polytechnic Art Gallery,

Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England

Selected Public Collections

• Federal Reserve Bank of New York
• Fidelity Investments, Wilmette, IL
• US Department of State, Washington, DC
• Pfizer
• General Electric
• Barclay’s Capital
• USAA Insurance, San Antonio, TX

Press

• Elle Décor, Anita Sarsidi, “Family Ties”, Designer Steven Sclaroff Looked to Generations Past, December/January, 2004, pg. 182.
• The New York Times, Barry Schwabsky, “A Chain Whose Links Chose One Another”, Review of “ Six Degrees of Separation” Forrest Scott Gallery, October 3,1999, p. 19, On The Towns / New Jersey
• Art News, Norine Dworken, November, 1991
• W, Jenni Lau, “W Eye”, June 3,1991,p. 32
• Casa Vogue, Madallena Sisto, December, 1990
• The Historical Mode, Richard Martin and Harold Koda, Rizzoli International Publications Inc., New York, 1989
• Metropolitan Home, Fred Bernstein, “Hot People’”, October 1989, p. 49
• New York Native, David Hirsh, “Romantic Landscapes, Iconic Objects”, July 10.1989, p.40
• Otoko, Hajime Koyana, April 1988
• Arts Magazine, Richard Martin, “Mythologies”, September 1985, p. 20
• The New York Times, Vivian Raynor, “Mythologies” July 12, 1985
• Art News, Sara Cecil, January, 1985
• PridenJournal-Bulletin, Edward J. Sozansky, February 12, 1982