Paul Manes

Cris Worley Fine Arts is proud to present our eighth solo exhibition of oil paintings by Paul Manes. The exhibition entitled, Into the Weeds, opens Saturday, November 16th, and will be on view through December 28th. The gallery will hold an Opening Reception for the artist, Saturday, November 16th, from 5-7pm. The artist will be in attendance.

Like all great artists, Paul Manes’ work has evolved over time. The clearest evidence of this is Manes’ many different subjects – ranging from figural forms to entirely abstracted patterns. Recent exhibitions depict the exceptionality of his technique – as either figural or abstracted, he contemplates and renders themes of personal interest. At first glance, these new paintings may seem disjointed from one another. Whether it be the differing color palettes of the landscape images or the wall of rain or the bowls falling upon one another, Manes’ new works seem to be a random smattering of subjects across his oeuvre. Yet, in this new show, the artist invites us to see how his subject matter has been affected through his own experiences.

Manes’ new work reflects his own physical move from New York City to Colorado a decade ago. Manes traded the concrete jungle for a sky of stars, and that location shift has changed his subject matter. In this new show, Manes has moved from the sky to the landscape, where he interacts with different elements and environments that he sees every day. Many of the works depicted reflect images of meadows and plants, and Manes’ large canvases and use of perspective allow for us all to step into this world he lives in daily. Every new painting acts as a window into another world – one where we get to see landscapes through the lens of the artist. Suddenly, we are alongside Manes on his motorcycle ride from home to the studio through the Colorado mountains.

While this show does reflect Manes’ move to Colorado, it also sees him revisiting past subject matters. His work focuses on the overgrowth and abundance – whether it be depicted in plants or an assemblage of bowls or a wall of rain. At the same time, the artist focuses on singular plants in different paintings, offering a detailed painting of his larger landscapes. Whether Manes is focusing on the large landscapes as a whole or the individual plants, his work reflects a personal contemplation of his new world.

This show’s work can all be understood as a reflection of Paul Manes. We see him revisiting subjects he has been fascinated with throughout his career. We also see the artist pulling techniques from his past to create these new subjects of landscapes. Manes’ new work invites us “into the weeds” alongside the artist, where we see how everything that he has experienced has culminated in these new works.

Paul Manes was born in Austin, Texas. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas in 1983 and went on to study at Hunter College in New York City. His works have been exhibited in one-person exhibitions across Texas, California, and New York, as well as internationally throughout Italy, France, Monaco, and Germany. Most recently he was included in the touring exhibition Painting After Postmodernism in Brussels, Belgium, Malaga, Italy and Caserta, Italy. Manes’ work can be found in the permanent collections of The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York; the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; the Tucson Museum of Art; the Museum of Fine Arts Houston; the Art Museum of Southeast Texas in Beaumont; and in the private collections of Yoko Ono and Emeril Lagasse. The artist currently lives and works in Carbondale, Colorado.

Into the Weeds

November 16 – December 28, 2024

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