My new painting is underway...
Acrylic gouache on gesso board
January, 2, 2019
Alan Singer
In preparing for my new solo exhibition here in Rochester presented by the Axom Gallery, I have written an artist statement about the path I have taken over the last decade or so which is to blend science, art, and mathematics - certainly a direction I have been interested in for many years. And in many ways the images I produce are related to the basic building blocks of life - with cells and energy as constituent parts. My compositions express a certain kind of dynamic geometric relationship.
Transfer monotype on paper, 2016
"Re-Entry" by Alan Singer
As I have written in my statement, I would have paid much more attention in my mathematics classes in junior high school, if my teachers had told me that there was a visual component to algebra for example. If I could visualize how the numbers worked and what they signified in relation to one another, I probably would have been better at math ( I hope! ). Well, now there are personal computers and they have a screen where you can play with numbers in a very visual way to construct new forms or just play with geometry. You may not realize it but a program like Photoshop functions on applied mathematics. Photoshop builds a grid of pixels which are so small they look like they blend seamlessly.
A grid built with a color plot function
gives you left to right, and top to bottom measurement
I have written in the past that using a computer has enabled me to compose imagery and construct in a wide range of colors, and at the most basic level it reminds me of the Etch-A-Sketch I had as a kid. The Etch-A-Sketch has two dials and each hand can control the movement of a stylus that creates an impression from left to right and from top to bottom. Now on my computer I have a program called Cinderella, and it can plot in an RGB ( Red,Green,Blue ) color palette the same kind of functions that you get in Photoshop using simple mathematical commands - so if you can measure it, you can show it.
"Big Dr. Wavelength"
Transfer monotype on paper
by Alan Singer
2014
Just getting used to writing the commands for the Cinderella program took a while, and when I could practice I would try out different ideas and see what I could represent. This image for example reminded me of some sort of heart rhythm. I found that a set of mathematical commands could give a representation that could resonate on a whole other level. Sometimes I thought that I was discovering universal principles this way, though I didn't know at first - what kinds of questions I should ask to get these results - it was all experimental for me. A couple of years later I could get my image to dance...( see below ).
"Modern Dance"
Transfer monotype on paper
by Alan Singer
This is all very two-dimensional, the construction of my art gets more complex when I introduce the illusion of depth and sculptural form. Luckily I found, and downloaded the program called 3D-Xplormath, and it allows me to build in three dimensions. This program was "invented" by Richard Palais and has several features that would attract the artist. 3D-Xplormath allows you to construct dimensional geometry and see it from every angle. I could also save my experiments in 3D geometry and see what they look like in other formats that would allow me to compose a scene. Here is an example of geometric forms arranged in a composition that appears to have real depth. It opens the way for some very creative, almost theatrical building of space, including many opportunities to light the stage, so to speak.
"Pose Please"
Transfer monotype on paper
by Alan Singer
Such potential! I can't wait to get back to work, to explore new forms and experiment with my mathematical shapes. If you are at all curious to see what I have discovered, come over to my show which will open at Axom Gallery, 176 Anderson Avenue, in Rochester, New York. The reception is scheduled from 4-7pm on January 12th, and the show runs through February 23, 2019. Call for further information: 585 232-6030. See you there, and Happy New Year!
