To those of you who subscribe to Venison Quarterly, Brain Donnelly may sound familiar. We interviewed him back in our Winter 2014 issue (here) and we are happy to promote his solo-show in the Portland area. We urge our Oregon readers to make it out this exciting exhibition!
 | Nothing Lasts Forever - Show opening in Portland, OROpening Reception: Friday, May 6th 6-9pm On View: May 6th - June 4th, 2016 Stephanie Chefas Projects is delighted to announce NOTHING LASTS FOREVER, the U.S. solo debut from Toronto based artist Brian Donnelly. Donnelly is well known for his aggressive approach to portraiture that involves defacing meticulously executed figures through the use of turpentine, hand sanitizer, and other materials. The resulting work is a study in deterioration, fortified by the philosophy that to take away from something can be just as provocative as to add to it. |
NOTHING LASTS FOREVER continues upon Donnelly's exploration of loss. Each portrait is a language of paradox with conflicting elements working against each other as a means of exploring both the immutable and the fleeting. The reduction of facial structure to abstract striae of color creates a heightened sense of ambiguity, figures who are vaguely familiar as if by way of a dream. Cloud formations placed in the backgrounds reference the portraits many of us have taken for school picture day and play upon transitory themes even further due to their constant shift in form. 'I approach portraiture as a mark of our decidedly ephemeral nature as living beings', states Donnelly. 'In the tradition of portraiture the sitter makes contact with the eternal, their likeness carried across generations. My portraits contradict that tradition. Like memories, these paintings are unreliable: portraits of their own loss rather than permanent effigies. I think of this work less as portraiture, and more as a paradoxical document of absence in which lasting forever is defined by being reduced to nothing.'
| ABOUT BRIAN DONNELLY Brian Donnelly attended the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto where he continues to live and work. Donnelly has exhibited his work in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Portland, as well as Toronto and including Art Basel Miami. His work can be found in private collections around the globe. The opening reception for NOTHING LASTS FOREVER will be held at Stephanie Chefas Projects on Friday, May 6th from 6-9pm. Stephanie Chefas Projects is located in Portland, Oregon at 305 SE 3rd Avenue on the second floor of the Urban Row building. The exhibition will be on view through June 4th, 2016 and is free and open to the public. |  Location: 305 SE 3rd Avenue, Suite 202 Portland, OR 97214 Hours: Wednesday to Saturday 1-6pm and by appointment Contact: info@stephaniechefas.com / 503.719.6945 |
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