Kehler Liddell Friday opening—two painters

Kehler Liddell Gallery
873 Whalley Ave., New Haven, (203) 389-9555
Paintings by Jason Buening and Jay Noble
May 1—June 1, 2008
Opening Reception: Fri., May 9, 6—9 p.m.

Press release

Kehler Liddell Gallery is eagerly awaiting the hanging of May's installment, featuring the vibrant paintings of member artist Jason Buening and guest artist Jay Noble. The former American University MFA classmates will be reunited in their first official exhibition in New Haven. The show will be on view at Kehler Liddell Gallery from May 1 to June 1, 2008.

Both painters are deeply and refreshingly engaged with the language of painting, on several levels. Their work includes rich symbolism as well as meaning derived from careful formal composition. While their subject matter varies from animals battling humans to mythologized professional athletes, each artist strives to interrelate color, structure, rhythm and space in concert with the underlying subject matter.

In his paintings, Jason Buening says that he is interested in creating "modern medieval space," a compressed space with an often skewed perspectival organization. He has compared the evolution of his canvases to that of medieval cathedrals, which go through many stages before completion as a unity of competing layers and ideas. He combines attention to form and volume with a rich, color-soaked palette. He brings these strengths to bear on a variety of subject matter, from closely observed landscapes and interiors, to wholly fabricated, collaged constructions.

Buening, a resident of New Haven, is a long time art teacher of students of all ages. He currently teaches Art History and Color Theory at the University of New Haven and Quinnipiac University.

Jay Noble's recent work portrays dramatic and fantastical moments of confrontation between animals and humans. While the subject matter is provocative, for Noble it is secondary to the strictly visual forces in the work. Using a rich, highly saturated palate, Noble's paintings are built from planes of color and have a structural integrity verging on the sculptural.

Noble lives in Lancaster, PA, where he is an adjunct professor of Art at York College of Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania College of Art and Design. In the summers, both Noble and Buening teach at the Putney Summer Programs, in Putney VT.

In advance of Westville's Art Walk weekend on May 10, there will be an open artist reception on Friday May 9, from 6—9 p.m. at the Kehler Liddell Gallery, located in Westville Village at 873 Whalley Avenue (203-389-9555). There is no admission fee for the gallery or reception. Hours of operation are Thursday through Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and by appointment. Further information on the gallery, Jason Buening, and other artists represented by Kehler Liddell can be seen online at www.kehlerliddell.com.