In the studio with Heather Day: A look into the making of Ricochet

Diane Rosenstein Gallery is pleased to announce Heather Day: Ricochet -- a solo exhibition of paintings and works on paper by the Bay Area-based artist.  This is her first solo exhibition in Los Angeles.

Heather Day makes abstract paintings comprised of scraped, smeared, and flooded pools of pigment. The compulsive energy of her work oscillates between rehearsed abandon and careful restraint. Her encompassing murals, large canvases, and intimate drawings study the mechanisms of sensory perception — mining what happens when the body interprets a sound as a texture, or a scent as a color. 

The title of the exhibition – Ricochet – refers to the artist’s process of navigating her compositions as one mark leads to the next, without a predestined resolution. The title is also a metaphor for the global chain of reactions in our natural environment, social and cultural space, and intuitive relationships with each other.  This body of work is a new chapter in her practice, beginning with the monumental diptych Fever Dream (2020), which serves as the bridge. The pairing of the two canvases recalls the seam of her sketchbook; and anticipates the new stitched paintings in this exhibition, such as Space Between (2020) which she describes as a “mind map.” 

Earlier this spring, during the onset of the pandemic, the artist left San Francisco for Joshua Tree and was surrounded by the quiet and solitude of the desert environment.  Here amid the desert spring, she was inspired by the wildflower superbloom and new colors seeped into these new paintings.  

The paintings in this exhibition were created during a transformative year.  Like many artists who have seen their exhibitions canceled or closed, Day’s first solo museum show was closed early due to the pandemic.  She feels so much gratitude and appreciation that the show was seen in person, if only for a few weeks.  Since then, she has taken refuge in her studio – in the physical and emotional space that allows quiet and experimentation.

Heather Day: Ricochet will be on view to the public from September 12 – October 24, 2020.  The gallery is open by appointment only. 

[Video credits: Director: Syra McCarthy | Editor: Syra McCarthy | DP: Andy Hoffman | Color: Sean Wells/Roast n' Post, Oakland | Sound Design + Mix: Matthew Tammariello | All artwork ©Heather Day]