Tony Shore
“Painting in the Dark”
New York, 532 West 24 Street
The show features the artist's latest paintings that capture vignettes of everyday life rendered on the unconventional support of black velvet. With his distinctive technique blending quotidian imagery with kitsch media, Shore captures the vibrancy of candid life as it unfolds in the shadows.
Shore renders seemingly ordinary moments with vivid majesty. A late night basketball game, a visit to a roadside hot dog joint, a psychic reading emerge from the dense black fabric as if from a dream or memory. These everyday moments take on increased significance when seen through a glowing lens of nostalgia. Capturing these moments with a masterful painting technique elevates the consideration of each scene to a realm of high art.
Through his cinematic approach to framing his compositions, Shore casts the viewer as voyeur. The darkness of the black velvet draws the viewer in to exist within the plane on which each moment is transpiring. We are afforded peeks into the shadows to revel in the chance to glimpse not only the seedy underside of society but also the sincerity of ordinary life.
