george billis gallery | Christopher Stott

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George Billis Gallery NYC April 2019

The evening of the reception for my exhibition saw great weather and a good turn out. I had many conversations — it’s nice to get feedback from others as we stand in front of the actual paintings.

Below are some very crude iPhone snapshots of the installation and some people pondering the paintings.

Seeing the paintings framed and lit is a joy for me — as I usually see them up close and usually in an incomplete state. I am grateful to be able to do this — to spend my days working on my art and to then have the opportunity for a gallery to spend time and energy to share the work.

I had my two teenagers with me this time around. We spent 5 days walking around New York and taking it all in. I am now back in my studio and hard at work on another painting that has a tight deadline, which seems to be the way I work best.

Upcoming Exhibition – Los Angeles

My next exhibition is only a month away – and I’m working hard on the last few paintings that’ll be sent to the George Billis Gallery in Los Angeles for the April 7th opening reception.

Click here to see where the gallery is located.

October 5 – Opening Reception

I traveled to New York to attend the opening reception at the George Billis Gallery for my current exhibition. My son came along for a few days of site seeing. He turned 15 on the day of the reception and I’m glad to say both he and I had a great time.

Receptions, for me, can be a bit of a nerve rattling experience. As a studio painter I spend all of my time in solitude and concentration. Focussing on square inch by square inch on each painting. This is, of course, exactly how I want it. It’s why I’m able to make as much work as I do. I like working toward the deadline of a gallery exhibition. It gives me something to aim towards.

So after spending so much time alone with each painting, it can be an exhilarating experience to see them hanging and lit in a large gallery space. I am especially proud of the way this exhibition turned out. But it can feel a bit exposing for there to suddenly be dozens of people looking so closely. These paintings invite this close scrutiny.

The best part about the receptions is connecting with people who make it a point to come see the paintings in person. I always say that I wish everyone could see them in their natural habitat instead of on a phone, tablet or computer screen.

https://youtu.be/h5w7_Zd7tn4

Underwood Standard Portable Typewriter II

This is the sister painting to the baby blue Royal typewriter in a simple vignette. A red Underwood Standard Portable Typewriter to be featured in my October 2017 solo exhibition at the George Billis Gallery in New York City.

This is another painting that left me very pleased with the outcome. It’s the culmination of years of work and dedication.

Royal Quiet De Luxe I

This is hands down my favourite painting that I have done in the past few years. It’s a Royal Quiet De Luxe typewriter in a simple vignette. It feels good when a painting comes together in all the right places.

This will be one of 18 new paintings showing at the George Billis Gallery in New York City from the beginning of October through to the beginning of November.

This is the culmination of plenty of work and focus. I painted all throughout the summer months and a huge sense of relief and accomplishment has come over me. I have kept busy boxing up and shipping the paintings, but also stepping back from an intense period of painting and now I’m gearing up for the fall months spent following the momentum I built up this past summer.

Western Electric Rotary Telephone – 2004 & 2017

Western Electric Rotary Telephone – this new painting is showing at the George Billis Gallery in New York City.

Thirteen years ago I painted this phone for the first time. It was when I began seriously building my oeuvre. I would paint fast and furious, thinking that a quickly rendered, expressive way of painting was what I wanted to achieve. It never really felt like a natural way for me to paint, but the subject always felt like the right one.

Western Electric Rotary Telephone / acrylic on canvas / 2004 / Christopher Stott — 11 x 14 / acrylic on canvas / 2004

I was painting with acrylics, and if the painting wasn’t done after an hour of work, then I felt like I was taking too long.

Over time I slowed way, way down and focused with an indirect painting technique. A very slow building of layers in oils. In person my paintings are still far more painterly than they appear on the screen before you.

Over the past several months I have experimented with paintings and tried a few different approaches. I’ll still do such experiments now and again, but I have decided to look back over the last 17 years of my paintings and will simply re-paint my own work with my new approach and technique. I want to copy my own portfolio, I want to see if I can make the paintings better, I want to see if I can learn from my own work.

In 2004 I signed up for Flickr where I have archived 740 of my paintings. Most of my works is there, including work done in 2000 as a student. Anyone who wants to see, warts and all, is welcome to browse.

Corona & Royal Typewriters

Corona No.3 Typewriter Oil Painting by Christopher Stott — Corona No.3 / 24 x 36 / oil on canvas

Typewriters are all about ideas and writing. They seem to spark the act, I think it’s because of the physicality of them. They make this amazing noise, your words literally express themselves vocally as you tap away at the keys. You have to immediately concentrate, your whole mind and body becomes involved. You focus.

Royal Typewriter Oil Painting by Christopher Stott — Royal Typewriter / 20 x 40 / oil on canvas

These two typewriters are a great contrast to one another – the Corona with its sleek black curves and stately design, the Royal with its crisp blue and modern edges.

I have these typewriters in my collection, and when they’re out of their cases they invite anyone around to sit down and type.

Both of these typewriters were found at Everything Old – an antique store in Brentwood Bay on Vancouver Island.

George Billis Gallery LA, May 21 – July 2, 2016

I had a great time in Los Angeles at the opening reception for my exhibition at the George Billis Gallery LA.

Christopher Stott / New Paintings / George Billis Gallery LA / 2016

For the most part, being a painter is a solitary experience. One spends a great deal of time focussing and concentrating on making the paintings, then things turn completely and you find yourself sharing the finished pieces with everyone you possibly can. It can be a little jarring to go from solitude and privacy to a public, open space.

But I’m very happy with the way the paintings turned out. And I think the gallery did a great job of displaying the paintings.

The gallery is also showing a few sculptural pieces by John A. Peralta. These exploded camera and projector pieces are fascinating. I see it as a deconstruction / reconstruction way of looking at things. Viewing these exploded objects has the same effect as my paintings – they make the viewer slow down and really investigate the object.

John’s construction of these sculptures is absolutely meticulous. True craftsmanship.

New Paintings at the George Billis Gallery LA

I’ve been working toward this exhibition of a dozen new paintings over the last several months. I’m very happy with the way each one turned out – you can see them here.

If you’re in the Los Angeles area, please do check it out. The paintings will be hanging at the George Billis Gallery LA from May 21 – June 25, 2016.

I will be at the artist’s reception on Saturday, May 21 from 5:00 – 8:00pm. Come say ‘hello’ if you can.

Work in Progress

Before this I shared a crowded clock piece. This week I’m sharing a clean, simple trio of clocks. I like the sense of space and order in this one.

This is one of the dozen new paintings that’ll be heading to Los Angeles for my exhibition next month.