MIRRORED VIEWFINDER

9 Oct-2 Nov 2024

THE PLACE BEYOND SLEEP, BEYOND ME, 2024

Overview

MIRRORED VIEWFINDER brings together 9 new paintings infused with bold expanses of colour, texture, and form. Copeland's work wrestles with the balance between the visible world and the undercurrents of reality, layering his canvases with thick, textured brush strokes that coalesce traditional art historical motifs with a self-reflective sensibility.

Living and working in New York City, Copeland has amassed a body of work which intensely re-works known subjects and popular imagery . Underlining much of his work is his ambition to dismantle notions of fixed definitions within art, where style and mediums are often subjected to frames and categories.

Copeland wants to produce work that remains interesting over time, to create art with depth, to offer his viewers compositions that are visceral and engaging. His latest series draws influence from filmmaking techniques, particularly film director and screenwriter, Stanley Kubrick's (1928 – 1999) in his representation of reality. As Copeland notes a viewfinder can become a ‘tool that could both help you see the audience’s view, along with giving the artist room to experiment and play.’ This prospect aligns with his approach, where his application of paint and compositions create a dialogue between viewer and composition that in its duality is both controlled and a removed view of reality.

MIRRORED VIEWFINDER is a study of echoes; Copeland investigates the complex narratives of perception and reality through his paintings. This collection underpins his continuous exploration of duality between reality and reflection, akin to that of a mirror. Reality, depicted through art historical themes such as still life, contrasts with his thick, textured movement of oil paint, echoing the liberation of paintings into a realm which challenges what we believe is 'happening'. Copeland likens this experience to infinite repetitions created by opposing mirrors or the dual nature of glass - both reflecting and transparent. His works assist viewers in experiencing paintings both physically and visually, with the inclusion of paintings within paintings creating an echo effect that allows the viewer's gaze to bounce back in altered form.

Capturing moments akin to a filmmaker, Copeland positions himself between the borders of clarity and ambiguity, daring his audience to confront their instinct for logic and certainty. MIRRORED VIEWFINDER invites viewers to investigate imagery through a dual lens of maker/consumer, whereby the autonomy of both creating and seeing freely is put into question.

Artists

Press

MIRRORED VIEWFINDER press release
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