Derek Buckner

In my most recent series of paintings, I try to achieve painterly virtuosity as well as master formal concerns by focusing on the play of light and shadow over the folding undulations of drapery. These works cross the line between abstraction and realism and by focusing in on large folds of drapery and large pillows pressed up against one another they function both as still lives and landscapes as well as abstractions. In two of the larger paintings, "Conspiracy" and "Multitude" I have developed this subject matter further by incorporating shrouded figures. The figures are covered with large white material and grouped in close configurations. The effect is both reminiscent of ancient artistic traditions as well as contemporary imagery. It is through expressive use of paint and a gestural approach to the subject that I attempt to a evoke a wealth of emotion while playing with notions of eroticism, fear and ambiguity.