November 7, 2015 – January 2, 2016

Jerald Melberg Gallery is pleased to present Brian Rutenberg: Camellia, featuring eighteen abstract landscape paintings depicting the Lowcountry of South Carolina.

While Rutenberg has explored this location many times before, this new body of work is notable because Rutenberg has simplified his compositions and in doing so has pushed them back toward the recognizable. This simplicity yields a clearer depiction: compositions suggest oaks clustered at the edge of a marsh, or toothpick-like pine trees pushing through thick underbrush. They are natural, unmarred places that could be sourced from anyone's memory.

Most of the compositions follow a basic outline: abstract, spindly tree trunks spread over horizon lines that creep from dark to light like a sea transitioning to sky on a hazy day. Colors deepen at the left, right and bottom edges of his canvases, supporting a u-shaped source of light. Depth is created in this vanishing point with velvety, paint-blended cold wax medium which is framed by paint so thick that it physically reaches out, beckoning with dimensional texture. 

The title of the exhibition is taken from a memory of youth: In spring my mother would place clear bowls of pink camellia blossoms floating in water on our bedside tables. I’d watch them drift and spin for hours as my eyelids grew heavy. Southern children are taught to drink in the wondrous details of the local landscape.

A South Carolina native, Rutenberg received a BFA from the College of Charleston and an MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Among his numerous awards and achievements, he is a Fulbright Scholar, a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow and an Irish Museum of Modern Art Work Programme Recipient. Since 1985 Rutenberg has been honored with over 100 gallery and museum exhibitions across the United States.

Jerald Melberg Gallery will host a free and public lecture by the artist on Saturday, November 7 at 11 am.

Jerald Melberg Gallery is located at 625 South Sharon Amity Road near the intersection with Providence Road. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday from 10am to 6pm. For more information about the exhibition, please contact the gallery at 704.365.3000. To view selected paintings from the exhibition online, visit the gallery’s web site at www.jeraldmelberg.com