“The universal language of humanity spanning across time and geography informs my work.”
– Kayla Bischoff

"Jibber Jabber" by Kayla Bischoff, 36x36in, acrylic on canvas (2015) $525 | BUY NOW — *"Jibber Jabber" by Kayla Bischoff, 36x36in, acrylic on canvas (2015) $525 | BUY NOW*

Masks have been a crucial element in religious iconography, particularly in primitive cultures, and by extension, visual art, which is, of course, how we know about those ancient worlds. Kayla Bischoff’s paintings are filled with faces rendered in simple terms that are nonetheless highly expressive. It is the most immediate way of identifying her work, and these most recent pieces reveal an ever-developing subtlety and variation in her painting. The artist describes it this way: “Gaping mouths, shrugging shoulders, flailing arms, and cackling faces occupy the surface in an overcrowded frenzy. On the surface my paintings are vibrant and playful; however, I invite the viewer to peer closer into the cluttered surface of detailed disorder to discover many of the abstracted figures experiencing some inner trepidation.”

“The style in which I paint is a balance of abstraction, representation, spontaneous expression, and conscious decisions. The characters are hurriedly drawn in frenzy, and then built upon with several layers of paint to enhance the depth of the surface. I convey my ideas in paintings because the immediacy allows for uninhibited mark making. The tactile nature of the paint feels authentic while connecting me to the earliest form of human visual expression.”

"Vamoose (diptych)" by Kayla Bischoff, 10x10in (each), acrylic on panel (2015) $275 | BUY NOW — *"Vamoose (diptych)" by Kayla Bischoff, 10x10in (each), acrylic on panel (2015) $275 | BUY NOW*

In “Vamoose” the figures are strikingly evocative of famous ancient formations such as Stonehenge and Easter Island, and Bischoff is clear that the references are intentional: “I seek to create a connection between contemporary art and that of past civilizations. I reference ancient artworks, such as figurines and masks from various cultures — Andean, Mesoamerican, Japanese, African, Aboriginal, etc. The universal language of humanity spanning across time and geography informs my work. The use of stylized figures acts as a communicative shorthand of body language and facial expressions. I am also greatly inspired by modern artists such as Keith Haring, Jean Dubuffet, and Elizabeth Murray. Through the playfully chaotic layers of figurative abstraction, my work comments on the plight of the individual and humanity as a whole.”

"Alter Egos" by Kayla Bischoff, 60x40in, acrylic & fabric on canvas (2016) $825 | BUY NOW — *"Alter Egos" by Kayla Bischoff, 60x40in, acrylic & fabric on canvas (2016) $825 | BUY NOW*

Bischoff’s second solo show Push/Pull: Paintings by Kayla Bischoff will be on exhibit February 1 - 26 at the Krempp Gallery in Jasper, Indiana. There is an opening reception February 2, from 5-7pm.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 24
Education: BA, (Magna Cum Laude) Studio Art: Painting Emphasis/Minors in Art History & Psychology, Bellarmine University, Louisville, KY, 2014
Website: http://www.kaylabischoff.com/
Gallery Representative: Galerie Hertz

"The Watchers" by Kayla Bischoff, 24x26in, acrylic & fabric n canvas (2017) $475 | BUY NOW — *"The Watchers" by Kayla Bischoff, 24x26in, acrylic & fabric n canvas (2017) $475 | BUY NOW*

"Don't Lose Your Head" by Kayla Bischoff, 40x40in, acrylic on canvas (2016) $625 | BUY NOW — *"Don't Lose Your Head" by Kayla Bischoff, 40x40in, acrylic on canvas (2016) $625 | BUY NOW*

"Petty Pile" by Kayla Bischoff, 48x30in, acrylic on canvas (2015) $575 | BUY NOW — *"Petty Pile" by Kayla Bischoff, 48x30in, acrylic on canvas (2015) $575 | BUY NOW*

Are you interested in being on Artebella? Click here to learn more. — *Are you interested in being on Artebella?* *Click here* *to learn more.*

Painting

Vignette: Benjamin Duke

Josh Jenkins · December 13, 2016

“How much monster, Duke’s Paintings ask us, are we willing to feel in ourselves, to accept, to affirm? What are the limits to which our egos restrict us, and what attractions and sensations liberate us from the cage of self? What aspirations and endeavors, Ben Duke’s paintings keep asking, lead beyond all compromises and reveal to us, finally what a body can think and do and feel.” — From Brian Kubarycz’s introductory essay to the catalogue entitled: Benjamin Duke 2001-2010: Ten years of Work with essays by Brian Kubarycz, and Su YuAnn, published by Garden City Publishing.

"Persistent Remainders" by Benjamin Duke, 60x65in, oil (2016), $8500 | BUY NOW — *"Persistent Remainders" by Benjamin Duke, 60x65in, oil (2016), $8500 | BUY NOW*

Benjamin Duke returns to exhibit in Louisville 11 months after presenting his painting “Louisville 2015: Full of Life, Now” (2015), to Metro Hall. He was Louisville’s first participant in a visiting artist initiative, introduced in 2015 as part of the Mayor’s Music & Art Series. The painting is on display in the Mayor’s Conference Room at Metro Hall.

Duke’s work takes our recognizable existence and twists it with pretzel logic. It is immediately accessible yet touches upon deeper currents: “In my paintings I ask myself “Is this the way the world is?’ I reshape and retool my painting experience to answer that question. But while the question begins with the world, it ends with the work itself: “Is this the way the world is in this work?”

The search is for the world in painting and painting in the world (painting worlds / painting’s world). Am I in the world or is the world in me? I allude to my life, to writers works, to imagery and it is my hope that this record of allusion conjures and creates the same. I am referring to text, theory, idea but I am also finding myself already there, looking out to see in.”

"Awakening as Self-Identity Matrix #2" by Benjamin Duke, 60x60in, oil, $8500 | BUY NOW — *"Awakening as Self-Identity Matrix #2" by Benjamin Duke, 60x60in, oil, $8500 | BUY NOW*

It wasn't a Dream, It was a Real Place, Duke’s new exhibit, will run December 16, 2016 through January 27, 2017 in University of Louisville’s Cressman Center for Visual Arts at 100 East Main Street. There will be an Artist’s Reception open to the public December 16 from 6 pm to 8 pm.

"Lingua Franca #2" by Benjamin Duke, 60x72in, oil (2016), $10,000 | BUY NOW — *"Lingua Franca #2" by Benjamin Duke, 60x72in, oil (2016), $10,000 | BUY NOW*

Duke is Associate Professor of painting at Michigan State University. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, he received his Master of Fine Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art Hoffberger School of Painting. His work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions from Chicago to Taiwan. Duke has also been awarded international residencies at Bamboo Curtain Studios, The Kuandu Museum of Fine Art at Taipei National University of the Arts, and the Vermont Studio Center.

Hometown: Louisville, KY
Education: BFA, University of Utah, Painting and Drawing Emphasis, 2002; MFA, Maryland Institute College of Art, Hoffberger School of Painting, 2006.
Website: http://www.bendukeart.com/
Gallery Representative: Ann Nathan Gallery (Chicago), A Gallery (Salt Lake City)

"TXT" by Benjamin Duke, 65x87in, oil (2016), $10,000 | BUY NOW — *"TXT" by Benjamin Duke, 65x87in, oil (2016), $10,000 | BUY NOW*

"Awakening as Self-Identity Matrix #4" by Benjamin Duke, 65x72in, oil (2016), $8500  | BUY NOW — *"Awakening as Self-Identity Matrix #4" by Benjamin Duke, 65x72in, oil (2016), $8500 | BUY NOW*

"Lingua Franca" by Benjamin Duke, 44x54in, oil (2016), $8500 | BUY NOW — *"Lingua Franca" by Benjamin Duke, 44x54in, oil (2016), $8500 | BUY NOW*

worlds

Vignette: Kayla Bischoff

“The universal language of humanity spanning across time and geography informs my work.”– Kayla Bischoff

Vignette: Benjamin Duke

“The universal language of humanity spanning across time and geography informs my work.”
– Kayla Bischoff