DON CHRISTENSEN
April 29 - June 4, 2023
In the John Little Barn
Reception: Saturday, April 29, 5-7pm
Artist Talk: Sunday, May 21, 3pm

VIEW CHECKLIST HERE
(contact the artist at dxtensen@earthlink.net about artworks and availability)

DON CHRISTENSEN: WOOD PAINTINGS IN A WOOD BARN

The Arts Center at Duck Creek is pleased to present Don Christensen: Wood Paintings in a Wood Barn in the John Little Barn and on the grounds at Duck Creek. The exhibition will be on display from April 29 - June 4, 2023, with an opening reception on Saturday, April 29 from 5-7 pm. The artist will give a talk about his exhibit on Sunday, May 21, at 3pm.

Don Christensen reflects on the Barn’s history and renovation with an installation of paintings on locally found wood and furniture. A veteran East End artist, Christensen works primarily in the language of geometric abstraction, employing a keen understanding of color relationships to create playful and spatially complex compositions.

Inside the Barn, Christensen presents a series of salvaged wood paintings, constructed from individually painted panels mosaicked together in rectilinear patterns. As in many of Christensen’s previous bodies of work, these abstract reliefs are titled after specific places and events. While some of the spatial references are more overt — as in “Bwari Market,” in which a consecutive row

Studio view, works in progress, 2023 of arches connotes a roof-like structure, and grid lines and painted shims imply windows and doors — other works appear purely formal, though gesture towards place by way of color palette, rhythm, and depth.

Throughout the grounds, Christensen will install a new series of “sign paintings.” These large-scale constructions resemble traditional signage, but replace didactic or informational language with evocative planes of color.

As a musician, Christensen finds a corollary between his interest in abstract art and instrumental music. “The emotionality that may come out of a piece of music may strike a lot of people the same way or in similar ways, but nobody could say exactly what it is.” Working in this non-referential arena, Christensen invites viewers to respond to the innate character of these salvaged materials and the formal relationships he’s invented within them.

Don Christensen (b. 1948, Nebraska) draws influence from a lifetime of experience as an active participant in the worlds of music and visual arts, including stints at the studios of Kenneth Noland, Larry Poons, and Jules Olitski, and collaborations with pioneering musical projects such as The Bush Tetras, The Philip Glass Ensemble, and Brian Eno. In the late 1980s, Christensen “discovered” the work of outsider artist, Emery Blagdon, in a barn in the Sandhills of Nebraska. Blagdon’s courage to pursue his calling in an isolated rural environment with little or no support or recognition combined with the incredible beauty and inventiveness of his artworks would become one of Christensen’s greatest influences, and lead him to more fully embrace a visual arts practice. Don has since developed into a prolific painter, drawing influence from the color field movement, and the mystical geometries of Piet Mondrian. Christensen is currently based in Springs, New York.

For further information, contact info@duckcreekarts.org.