Martin Reyna "Untitled (Ref 17136)", Painting

Description

Ink on paper

Edition: Unique, Unframed.

Reyna works with ink, acrylics and oils on canvas or paper. One of his … more Ink on paper

Edition: Unique, Unframed.

Reyna works with ink, acrylics and oils on canvas or paper. One of his signature techniques is to dilute his mediums so the colors will dissipate and intermingle in uncontrolled ways. When using ink on paper, a small bit of water is introduced to the surface, creating profound effects as the color seems to vibrate outward, expanding harmoniously into space.

Martín Reyna is an Argentinian-born abstract painter living in Paris, France. His gestural abstract paintings delight the eye and activate the mind with their luminous color relationships and deft explorations of perspective and space. Reyna is the winner of theChandon Prize, Buenos Aires, Argentina, the Jean-François Millet Prize of Paintings, Valognes, France, the Nuevo Mundo Foundation Prize, and the Gunther Prize of Paintings, among others.He recently completed a Ballinglen Arts Foundation residency in Ballycastle, County Mayo, Ireland, and was awarded a Fellowship at the Fundación Antorchas, Buenos Aires. Reyna works with ink, acrylics and oils on canvas or paper. One of his signature techniques is to dilute his mediums so the colors will dissipate and intermingle in uncontrolled ways. When using ink on paper, a small bit of water is introduced to the surface, creating profound effects as the color seems to vibrate outward, expanding harmoniously into space.Reyna is interested in the balance between freedom and planning. His method is to meticulously plan the linear and spatial properties of his compositions, while leaving room to instigate moments within his process when the forces of nature take over, leading the work in directions he cannot foresee. Two different, but complementary objectives inspire Reyna as he works.The first, as described above, concerns his technical method of pitting the forces of chaos against those of control, by selectively moistening his surfaces so the mediums will react in spontaneous and unpredictable ways.The second concerns compositional harmony. Reyna is interested in exploring how the negative, or unpainted, areas of the surface interact with those areas that are activated by line, color, and form. He has described his compositions asLandscapes of Space. Unlike landscapes that portray the natural world, these abstract landscapes reveal new perspectives on how color, form, light, and emptiness interact within the illusionary, spatial void. Reporting for La Nacion, Nathalie Kantt described watching Reyna work:Shot from above in cascade form, the Chinese ink reacts in different ways on the paper, previously moistened in certain sectors. The shapes of the spots depend on the wet surface, which shrinks towards the vanishing points. You have to act fast before the moistened parts dry out. Says Reyna, ‘I let the stain be built by the accident between water and color. My attempt is to achieve a work that, when finished, is unknown to me. Reyna has exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Europe, South America, and the United States.Recent solo exhibitions includeTeodora Galerie, Paris, Artemisa Gallery, NYC, Infinito Gallery, Buenos Aires, Antidote Art & Design, Dubai, and Kentler International Drawing Space, New York. Artemisa Gallery, NYCGalerie Theodora, ParisOtra Galería, Buenos AiresDel Infinito, Buenos AiresPhoto credit: Eric Mistler less