44 Gallery is proud to present the work of Rich Wojdula in the main gallery and Sydni Griffin and Madison Busi in the South Gallery.
Rich Wojdula a longtime Colorado Springs resident that recently moved to Santa Fe. G44 Gallery has represented him for the last eight years and they are honored to have his work showcased in their new location. Rich’s work can be found in numerous collections around the United States and Canada.
Classically trained in drawing and painting, Wojdula later became an accomplished functional and nonfunctional ceramic artist while still pursuing his 2-D artwork. In the early 1990s, in collaboration with another artist and business associate Patricia Crawford, he created a series of “boxes” and large sculptural pieces with moving gears. Based on old movies, irreverent depictions of art, current issues, political and non-political, these metaphorical wooden automata literally “took off” under the auspices of the Brigitta Schluger Gallery in Denver, Colorado. Television, featured newspaper coverage and art shows followed. In 2002, Rich Wojdula returned to painting full-time and has since been represented by several galleries. Mr. Wojdula does not place an emphasis on “Style” as much as substance and competence in execution of the idea/work. Having taught many disciplines of art over 30 years, he now enjoys this current time for the freedom it allows him to partake in further exploring the art process.
He cites such artists as Richard Diebenkorn, Gerhard Richter, Mark Rothko and the Abstract Expressionists of the 40’s and 50’s as having a strong influence on his development as an artist.
“My work is based on the nuances and dynamics of light, color and shape. Specifically, I am intrigued with the interaction of a painting’s elements, such as line and the tensions/affects which it encounters with the spatial field. The diversions and paths in the process of painting as a result of unperceived “accidents” provides me with surprises and unformulated results. Subliminal content beneath subsequent painted surfaces, the impact of immediate markings, expressive gestures, all contribute to a cumulative personal expressive journey.” -Rich Wojdula
The exhibition is through the month of August.
For more information on the gallery, please visit www.44gallery.com.
