Much more colorful than my own work, Digital “Paintings” will be featured this June at the Spinning Plate Gallery, in Pittsburgh. The work of my long, lost cousin Ricardo Chiaravalle (Chiaravalle being my father's original name), they will provide a nice contrast from my usual exhibitions.
The show’s title, “When Universes Collide”, references the way these 100% digital artworks are created from disparate photographs “mashed” together. These result in dynamic and unique images and could never have imagined beforehand. Chiaravalle’s “Paintings" go through numerous digital processes, and I love the unexpected quality achieved with these juxtaposed images. It may not be immediately obvious, but I believe they have a similar quality of authenticity as does thrown paint, ala Jackson Pollock. With an OPENING on JUNE 9, from 6-8 PM, the show will run from June 3 to 30. Beverages and food served. 5821 Baum Blvd, Pittsburgh Pa 15206
Tracing the evolution of any of these pieces would be virtually impossible. Each is the end product of numerous steps in a variety of processes. Some use cutting “holes” through one image and then pasting it on top of another. Others involve altering one or more colors through adjusting its hue and saturation, darkening and lightening, dodging and burning. “Inverting” the colors – changing their hues to their opposite on the color wheel -- often gives very interesting results.
Highly prosaic photos form the basis for these pieces: a rough concrete floor, a pebbled sidewalk, patterns of light through a cut glass window, and photos of images shot right from the TV. One of the most exciting and unusual aspects of this body of work is serendipity, which the great sculptor Isamu Noguchi felt is the most powerful force in art.