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Tarnished presents the work of these two contrasting artists as they orchestrate permutations of tarnish, lustre and luminosity in a range of new works on paper, canvas, video and installation, confirming this ancient technique as a vital medium in contemporary art.
Schwalb's drawings use the classical Renaissance technique of metalpoint in ways that challenge all the traditional concepts. Juxtaposing a wide variety of metals (silver, gold, brass, copper, platinum, pewter, bronze and aluminum) she obtains soft shifts in tone and colour reminiscent of the luminous transparency of watercolour. Horizontal lines and tone evoke an atmosphere of serenity, and the shimmer of light on the surface, created by the metals, is quite unlike any of the usual effects of metalpoint. Schwalb has been working within a square format almost exclusively since 1997. An even grid of narrow horizontal lines forms the basic structure of her drawings and paintings. But unlike the work of Agnes Martin, with whom she is often compared, this geometric regularity serves as a spatial context for irregular events on the surface. In recent works, Schwalb creates a counterpoint between fine lines drawn with a stylus and broad swatches of bronze or copper tones.
Winstone presents installations that interlink the elements of her practice: silverpoints, title paintings and video.
The delicacy of metalpoint allows her to work intuitively and repeatedly on paintings, drawing with metal objects or a drill while viewing video. Winstone combines her own footage with that of others, mixing performances by known artists with the as yet unknown. Especially significant has been her daughter Anna who has been a constant muse and collaborator for the past nineteen years, helping her; 'to see through another generation's experience'. Winstone works with gesture; however, in contrast to traditional gestural abstraction, her actions are attempts to capture the communications of others.
Leaning panes of glass are often included partially glazing the paintings and reflecting the fragility of relationships that form her subject.
By these means, Winstone creates a space in which to contemplate that which is fluid in motion and that which is formed, however transitory.
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