Painting Critique - #1

Michael Wells
"Light Modulator (Wave)"
April 2000
Oil on Wood
48" x 48"

I am very excited to start off a new series of articles that will appear randomly throughout the upcoming months with such a unique piece. The submission entitled "Light Modulator (Wave)" was sent in by the artist Michael Wells. The medium is oil on wood, and the size measures 48 inches wide by 48 inches high, which converts to 4 feet square. It is part of a series by the artist entitled the "Light Modulator Series", which is comprised of similar paintings that all "look different depending upon the lighting conditions and the relative position of the viewer".

My instinct when first viewing this piece was of regret that I am not able to see it in person for this critique. It seems to be a painting with strong three-dimensional illusion, which I am sure cannot be appreciated to the fullest extent through a low-resolution digital reproduction of the piece. Although I'm sure that an art critique could never be completely fair under these circumstances for any painting, I have found that there are still plenty of aspects of this artwork that can be addressed while viewing the painting in this capacity.

"Light Modulator (Wave)" is a non-representational painting, like the rest of them in the series, that is purely conceptual and full of optical illusion. The painting is clearly full of dichotomy in many different ways. On the one hand it creates an industrial, artificial feel because of the metallic, repetitive tone yet remains very organic through the use of curves/waves. It seems to be made up of layers of spiral texture that resonate off the surface, yet it still possesses an angular composition as the light refracts off the painting at different angles. Furthermore, and definitely the most pivotal aspect of the painting, the "objects" seem to possess a great amount of potential energy that in turn creates the illusion of movement. Yet...they also seem passively still and inanimate. Ultimately, each of the dichotomies within the piece clearly points to the exquisite use of illumination and reflection in contrast with shadow to be the magic behind this piece.

I find "Light Modulator (Wave)" to be very successful in Wells' endeavors to portray the illusionary qualities of light and shadow. Conceptually, the dichotomy within the painting is abstract enough to allow the viewer to relate to the painting in his/her own way. In general, I am always a fan of such open-ended artwork. Thanks Michael!