CONCEPTUAL ABSTRACTION

Wess Dahlberg's paintings function outside the traditional viewer-painting relationship because the paintings beckon the viewer to investigate the substance of the painting's image.

In the press release for his solo show of January 2007, Lemmons Contemporary of New York wrote:

Wess Dahlberg brings to light the dichotomy between the art object and the mental assessment of the art object. Inspired by abstractionists such as Ad Reinhardt and the mathematical philosophy of the Golden Rectangle, Dahlberg creates irregular grids of thickly layered opulent acrylic paint interrupted by meticulous renderings in oil of the adjoining acrylic drips. Working with two styles of painting, one a formal exercise in material and abstraction, the second a hyper self-referential interpretation of the art object, Dahlberg creates a tension between material and the consciousness of the viewer.

The simultaneous contrast of the two competitive painting styles on one canvas denies the viewer's eye one single place to focus, inviting the viewer to take a closer inspection of the multi-dimensional surfaces. Dahlberg states in his published essay Existential Paint, "My paintings with their 'specific yet unquantifiable' characteristics defy the static illusion of strict 'objecthood'." The result can be interpreted as a philosophical inquiry into the way we look at painting, as well as asking the viewer to simply slow down and become more acquainted with the mechanisms of thought which give rise to the mental images we so often regard as the physical world.

Below are details of "Substance". At the bottom of this page are portals to Dahlberg's other styles and writings.

Portals to Mr. Dahlberg's other unique painting styles:
EXISTENTIAL PAINT					AESTHETIC CONTINUUM	THE MISCONCEPTIONS
1987 - Present					1994 - Present	2002 - Present
Of further interest, perhaps, is the paperwork:
PUBLISHED WRITINGS ARTIST STATEMENTS CURRICULUM VITAE   CONTACT INFO
And for the most recent: