Loving the Pattern - Motifs in the Work of Rimi Yang and Jane Maxwell
We love how artists Jane Maxwell and Rimi Yang incorporate repeated design motifs in their work. While the human figure is a central theme for both artists, their divergent approaches to pattern underlie integral aspects of their artistic processes.
Maxwell’s layered, repeated imagery creates an atmospheric effect by utilizing contemporary advertisements and found paper materials to build a multi-faceted surface, and imbue a sense of history, time and place into the created image. Patterns are formed out of the repetitive imagery in the vintage posters Maxwell uses to construct her collages. In Yellow Houndstooth, the background effectively helps to isolate and define the female figure as Maxwell incises into the layered image, literally cutting the figure out. The houndstooth pattern gives volume and shape to the two dimensionality of the figure, creating a beautiful contrast between the flatness of lush, opulent color.
Rimi Yang incorporates colorful, playful and picturesque florals as well as patterns reminiscent of applique and decorative art motifs to her figurative works, drawing reference to her multi-cultural background which informs her work. Ornamentation, found in both Eurasian as well as Mediterranean art, is a theme that links the East and the West and is a common subject in Yang’s work which melds Western and Asian imagery. In Rhythm of Nature, Yang utilizes a sumptuous vine pattern in the dress, a motif that spans the East and West: originally a common pattern in Ancient Greek continuous scrolls it was later adapted by Chinese potters and can be seen in contemporary decorative works today.
Represented at JoAnne Artman Gallery: 511 A West 22nd St. New York NY 10011 || 326 North Coast Hwy. Laguna Beach, CA 92651
949.510.5481 || www.joanneartmangallery.com || [email protected]