Whitney Bedford’s violent, beautiful brushstrokes build up and destroy underlying drawings of shipwrecks, islands and volcanic masses. Updating classic academic paintings of maritime scenes and iconic views of cataclysmic eruptions, these metaphors for impending doom are cathartic interpretations of the chaotic forces of our time. Bedford reworks preexisting cultural frames of reference to explore deeper emotions and political realities at work in our collective consciousness.
Bedford’s intense hues often parallel the tension between stroke and image. Acidic greens, blues and yellows render apocalyptic skies while oranges and fuchsias birth strange masses of land, water or animals. Her uneasy chromatic decisions are themselves a mysterious Siren call, transforming traditionally melancholic naval scenes into a visually explosive and volatile experience. Her work masterfully wrestles imagery from abstraction and abstraction from imagery, becoming “battlegrounds on which structures and meanings are torn apart.” One of the most interesting young artists today, Bedford offers juicy, bold paintings that layer more dualities, decisions, content and color than most contemporary painting can handle.
Bedford has recently had solo exhibitions at Art:Concept, Paris and D’Amelio Terras, New York. This year her work has been included in exhibitions at LA Louver, Venice, CA, Inman Gallery, Houston, TX and Nina Menocal, Mexico City, Mexico. She received her MFA from UCLA and her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. Whitney Bedford lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.
Whitney Bedford
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Whitney Bedford’s violent, beautiful brushstrokes build up and destroy underlying drawings of shipwrecks, islands and volcanic masses. Updating classic academic paintings of maritime scenes and iconic views of cataclysmic eruptions, these metaphors for impending doom are cathartic interpretations of the chaotic forces of our time. Bedford reworks preexisting cultural frames of reference to explore deeper emotions and political realities at work in our collective consciousness.
Bedford’s intense hues often parallel the tension between stroke and image. Acidic greens, blues and yellows render apocalyptic skies while oranges and fuchsias birth strange masses of land, water or animals. Her uneasy chromatic decisions are themselves a mysterious Siren call, transforming traditionally melancholic naval scenes into a visually explosive and volatile experience. Her work masterfully wrestles imagery from abstraction and abstraction from imagery, becoming “battlegrounds on which structures and meanings are torn apart.” One of the most interesting young artists today, Bedford offers juicy, bold paintings that layer more dualities, decisions, content and color than most contemporary painting can handle.
Bedford has recently had solo exhibitions at Art:Concept, Paris and D’Amelio Terras, New York. This year her work has been included in exhibitions at LA Louver, Venice, CA, Inman Gallery, Houston, TX and Nina Menocal, Mexico City, Mexico. She received her MFA from UCLA and her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design. Whitney Bedford lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.