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Chelsea Gibson “Caress”
Chelsea Gibson's latest painting series invites viewers into an intimate and erotic visual embrace. Closely framed details of figures fill the canvas, their torsos, and limbs searching each other with a sensitive touch. Caresses warm the surface, simmering with unease.
The intimacy between Gibson's truncated figures is palpable. The viewer discovers longing and joy juxtaposed with ... more >> New series of sensual paintings by Chelsea Gibson
Chelsea Gibson's latest painting series invites viewers into an intimate and erotic visual embrace. Closely framed details of figures fill the canvas, their torsos, and limbs searching each other with a sensitive touch. Caresses warm the surface, simmering with unease.
The intimacy between Gibson's truncated figures is palpable. The viewer discovers longing and joy juxtaposed with fear and alienation. Loose, abstract gestures merge into tightly rendered hands, feet, and facial features. The palette is limited to fleshy, warm hues and cool blues.
In "Caress," Gibson gazes inward; she rebuilds stylistically as if after devastation. Her cool observation is soft and warm. Bodies and skin inhabit the entire surface. Abstraction and figuration lie in tension.
The body, no longer simply an object of perception, has become the seat of knowledge and experience. Sensitive souls inhabit sensate flesh. Longing penetrates Gibson's work, lust intermingling with affection. The simply carnal carries relational complexity. With bodily self-awareness, lover adores lover.
Chelsea Gibson (b. 1983) is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and Boston University. She began oil painting at the age of twelve and has twice participated in the New York Studio School Drawing Marathon. Gibson has shown widely in the US in solo and group exhibitions. A former adjunct professor of drawing and design at the University of North Alabama, Gibson has lectured at Boston University and the University of Iowa. Her work is held in private collections worldwide. Gibson lives and works in Brattleboro, Vermont.
