Exor Galleries. From May 23rd through Jul 30th, 2009. Purvis Young: RAW, opening at Exor Galleries in Boca Raton, features twenty works by the ultimate recycler and artist extraordinaire, Purvis Young. Several of the works will be on public view for the first time. The collection includes large wooden pieces which characterize the body of work Purvis produced during his most vital decades.
Celebrated as one of America's premier urban contemporary painters, Young's work is featured in private collections throughout the world and 37 prestigious national public collections, including: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Studio Museum of Harlem and the American Folk Art Museum. Young, a Miami native received the "Key to the City" on December 5th, 2008.
Purvis Young paints on anything that can support paint and the pressure of an artist's hand-cardboard, discarded political signs, used paper, doors, plywood scraps, metal sheets, carpet remnants-you name it and Purvis has painted on it. It all sounds very "green" until you realize that Purvis isn't about being green for "green's sake." Purvis is a resourceful man; he uses materials and inspiration harvested from the streetscapes that he depicts.
Purvis is the real deal. He paints with the conviction that God put him on Earth to paint. There's no image to protect or vogue wave that he's looking to ride. Raw Purvis paints the struggles of humanity on everything around him. Familiar forms in his work address racial struggles and urban afflictions. Recurring metaphors of white horses offering freedom, halos signifying saintly stature, pregnant women with the hope of a fruitful tomorrow all emerge with a vital life force invigorating yesterday's discards.
Exor Galleries
291 Via Naranjas. Suites 45A and 50A
Boca Raton, FL 33432
561.361.7474
www.exorgalleries.com
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