Statement

"every form and zone of color is seized in its characteristic emotional force, and these are the paths by which finite things become infinity..

Benjamin Ferguson's art explores the subconscious through the emotional and fluid components of expressionist painting. This exploration questions the order of our lives and our place in this world, as the abstract logic of intuition guides both the subject matter and color schemes between the natural and subconscious worlds. The differing levels of abstraction are a result of his intuitive thinking navigating the realms of what he sees and imagines. Quick marks become figures, objects, and landscapes, which flicker and move through the layering of color and images, and dry brush stokes cross washes with linear elements. Coming from their own time and place, and improvised, the imagery rises from a deep place into conscious reality.

Animals, plants, buildings, and other objects are sometimes anthropomorphized to explore the playful, dangerous, and unpredictable elements of human nature. Produced through subconscious activity, the inhabitants make their way across the canvas, coming to life through layers of color. Angular relationships in the composition create movement and urgency to mirror both the imagery and the palette.The intuitive process of painting combined with the tactile nature of applying paint inspires his work. Despite various levels of conscious decisions made during the process, it is easy to believe that the images in his art exist on their own terms. Alfred Hitchcock's statement, "I believe in surprise, I believe in suspense", is wonderful and concise summary of his creative process.

Bio

Benjamin Ferguson is a visual artist and musician living in Brooklyn, NY. Having received a BFA from the University of Georgia, he has been included in exhibitions in Athens, GA, Seattle, WA and New York City. Since he was old enough to hold a crayon, Benjamin was creating art impulsively, intuitionally, and constantly. Growing up in the South, teachers would complain about or compliment his art as it usually appeared on his homework, and friends and family members were often baffled that he preferred drawing to playing sports or anything else. After receiving a BFA in Drawing and Painting from the University of Georgia, he fled the South as far as he could – to Seattle – and exhibited in numerous small galleries and coffee shops for ten years.

A combination of influences began to affect his work: exposure to German Expressionism and post war art movements, contemporary art, and a vibrant anarchist community which focussed on labor, immigrant, and prisoner rights. The emotional response to these influences were perfectly accommodated by his intuitional and subconscious approach to creating art. Soon experimental video and their soundtracks, which had begun while living in the South, became a logical extension of his drawing and painting.

While visiting New York City, he arranged to paint murals in a Chelsea coffee shop, and committed to moving to the city soon after. As the twin towers were falling on 9/11, Benjamin was packing for the move, and has resided in Brooklyn ever since. The influences of his past have been amplified by life in a city bursting with art and the socio-political elements of its diverse communities.