Purely Abstract

A curated collection by Constantine Nicholas

‘Random Scrub’ (detail view) pigment, pen on paper. 2024. @artcons9

I’ve always wanted to curate a show on abstract art. I mean pure abstract work. Which to me is the non-figurative, the non-literal, where the subject matter is mostly a pure form of expression – from the artist’s hand or connected device. But intrinsically formed with the sensitivity of the medium in hand.

Think about an artist like Jackson Pollock who limits his direct touch through paint with sticks, Gerhard Richter, who scrapes paint with brooms and rakes, Anselm Kiefer, who sculpts with coarse materials and flame throwers, to someone like the Australian artist Dale Frank, who pours and bleeds tinted fluids into still ponds. They all have identified a way to work that has distance. In these there are no cautious touch ups or fixes – to make things right, and there are no such things as mistakes. They all eventually reach a point or finalization that works. At some point the judgement, analysis and thinking has been kept at bay by the fluidity, the materiality and the innate feel of the medium.

In this vein I wanted to share the works that I have collected on Solana that embody in some way, this aesthetic. Whether created in digital, photography, analogue or hybrid forms these works, for me, encapsulate this intent. It’s this randomness that comes with pulling off a unique work of art that speaks to us through the material form. I hope that you can see this also.

Featured artists:

Silvia Anan, Ben Harley, Culture Hacker, Designz, Thorpart, David Tiong, Granuled, Yugor, Os, 000Million, Avekno, Steve Bennett, Ed Neumann.

View artists’ selected works

March 22, 2024

All opinions expressed in this curation and its content are purely based on my experience, as a professional artist working in the fine art industry since graduating from Art College in 1987. Including working in art museums, commercial art galleries, extensive visits to art fairs and major international art exhibitions. @artcons9