Oliver Seda

What I hope to achieve with this body of work is for the viewer to become immersed in the exhibit and have an entirely unique and emotional response to it. In this body of work there are competing themes of abstraction and greater detail, as well as the combination of the two. In terms of what experiences have influenced my art-making, I would say living in New York City has influenced it. This is because living in such a fast-paced city like this one causes many to overlook the beauty of everyday sights. For example, a large inspiration for the texture of my abstract paintings has been the textures seen in decaying paint jobs throughout the city, as well as old concrete buildings deteriorating.

In the process of creating this body of work, I've explored various methods of painting, drawing, and printmaking. Through this exploration, I have sharpened my technique to create such textures, and realized what mediums are most effective to replicate these textures.

I have been influenced conceptually and visually by many artists. For example, Miklos Suba is one of my early inspirations for the creation of more detailed drawings of urban architecture in Brooklyn, New York. Not only did his use of detail greatly inform my own technique, but the subject matters, he chose inspired me to pay more attention to the everyday beauty of architecture in New York. Another artist that influenced me notably is Max Ernst. Ernst's abstract drawings inspired me to bring my detailed work in a new direction. Instead of capturing great detail, I used great detail to aid abstraction. In other words, I transitioned from using many fine lines for shading and texture, to using them as the subject matter. Finally, Mark Rothko has been another great inspiration for me. He inspired me to create abstract paintings, and much of my work has been greatly informed by his use of color.

I chose to exhibit my work in a symmetrical fashion so that the textures and details draw the viewer into the center. I have also placed the larger abstract paintings on the opposite sides of the exhibit in order to create a feeling of immersion when the viewer is at the center. This also helps draw the viewer to the smaller, more detailed pieces in the center. One way I helped to develop a relationship between the viewer and the artwork is through my use of color in my abstract paintings and my use of detail in the drawing. The colors in my abstract paintings help give the viewer an emotional reaction that is difficult to describe simply because the viewer does not know what they are looking at. Concerning the detailed drawing, I decided to use a relatively smaller scale in order to make the viewer come up close and have a more intimate experience with the work.

I have arranged and presented my artworks to support this connection between the art and the viewer by placing the detailed drawing at eye level and including lots of abstract paintings in order to overwhelm the viewer with different, even conflicting emotions. The layout of the exhibit also helps to draw the viewer from the abstract paintings to the detailed drawing as the scales decrease and converge to the more intimate pieces, drawing the viewer in.

I don't intend for my audience to feel, think, experience, understand, see, or learn anything specific from my art. On the contrary, my work is about the viewer having an entirely unique, individual, emotional, and intimate experience with my art. Therefore, through my use of significant form I allow the meaning of my art to live with the viewer, not the art itself.