Westside, Los Angeles
Chet Glaze
Island Magic
Patrick PainterPatrick Painter, Inc. is pleased to present, "Island Magic," a solo exhibition featuring artwork by Chet Glaze. In this new body of work, Glaze traverses the much-trodden road of Disneyland's exuberant iconography, and infuses it with his own aesthetic language. The exhibition's title derives from Tom Sawyer's Island at Disneyland. The Island is situated apart from the main theme park, and is only accessed via raft. For Glaze, the Island symbolizes a time gone by, and a kind of sacred territory both literally and mentally. He describes it as the only place in the theme park to indulge in a truly adolescent capacity, far removed from the primary sprawl. It is that experiential frame of reference which gave rise to this new body of work imbued with the magic and mythos of memories. In many pieces, such as DAZE for DAYS (2015), wood elements are interwoven throughout, both as a medium and a motif. A common element in Glaze's work, this is a natural off-shoot of the artist's wood-working background. In DAZE for DAYS, branches rendered in thin washes appear almost embossed, as if one could actually feel the texture of the grain. Seemingly floating against a fiery backdrop, the branches intertwine and overlap, leading the eye on a never-ending path across the canvas. A candle burns brightly from behind, creating an undefined space that is both close and distant. While we see no literal representations of the famed theme park, the pieces speak to a kind of shared cultural experience in which shapes, colors, textures, and meanings coalesce to create memories. Glaze's penchant for what he considers in-between moments manifests itself in different forms: wood grain, smoothly blended backdrops, and unpainted sections of canvas which create a visual tension that leaves more questions than answers. This is Chet Glaze's first solo exhibition with Patrick Painter, Inc. Glaze received his BA from California State University, San Bernardino (2004), and his MFA from the University of California, Santa Barbara (2006). His work is currently on display at the Culver Center of the Arts in Riverside, CA. He lives and works in Riverside, California.