marigeoinbucatarie interior

"In gestures that wipe away what we can only assume lies beneath the surface, 
Syed makes space for absence." 

SHAAN SYED - One Minus One 
March 20 – April 18, 2014 @ Ana Cristea Gallery

"Negation and loss play an inherent role in the production of Syed’s paintings. As opposed to the additive construction of the multimonochromes of Ellsworth Kelly, which have been described in their approach as 1+1=1, Syed builds his works from a reductive construction that separates and isolates, rather than joining together. The use of filler has become a predominant component of Syed’s large-scale paintings. This collaboration began when Syed used the material to return a textured surface to a blank slate.  Its fast-drying, colorless and utilitarian qualities won the artist over and have since found a greater presence in his practice. In this body of work, the surface area of the filler swells to take over the painting.  The filling in and the covering over signify just as much as the impasto of the colors reveal. "

Ana Cristea Gallery  
521 West 26th Street 
New York, NY, 10001 

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