Gail Wagner's new works at Spark Gallery are exactly what her title implies; a harmony of color, shape, and texture that entices further exploration.
Upon entering the space viewers are dazzled with an explosion of color on the large canvases. Stepping closer one sees the textures Wagner employs, watercolor-like ground supports abstracted forms representing plant structures. Interspersed with these shapes we find both plants and animals rendered in an illustrative style. To offset the natural elements of flora and fauna, Wagner inserts geometric shapes that sometimes feel like an alien language.
This might seem too much but Wagner creates a beautiful balance between all the various elements. How she chooses and renders these elements is the magic of her art. Her inspirations come from the oddities of the natural world. Fossils, fungi, and sea creatures are equally apt fodder for her work. The parallels found in divergent species inspire and intrigue.
The color juxtapositions are particularly pleasing. In Alliteration, 40x60 inches, a blue slug interplays with a cream colored leek, while parnassus grass and silhouetted chocolate vine push their way onto the canvas. The teal damask pattern of decapoda peeks out amongst the watery textures of the dark green and chartreuse background. Pale green rectangles march their way up the canvas leading your eye to the unmissable magenta shape floating above it all, as if an ancient civilization left its mark.
One would assume that a large canvas such as Alliteration would be necessary for Wagner to manage all the elements and convey her meaning. But Wagner's style translates just as beautifully in Analogy. This tiny 4x6 inch canvas packs in ginkgo, snake fern, bee orchid and two of her otherworldly shapes, yet it doesn't seem crowded. It feels just as balanced as the larger works.
Her work is both serene and energizing at the same time. The colors, while sometimes vibrant, are found everywhere in nature, giving a pleasing calm to the work. The shapes and textures play off one another as if in a wild landscape of creatures. One is at once in a naturalist's notebook and a Rousseau painting. Just as the Jacquard looms of 200 years ago wove patterns into Damask fabric, Wagner interlaces her biological inspirations in fantastical representations of a harmonious world.