NATALYA BURD : "Travel Diaries"

"Travel Diaries"

"blues for bees"
2020
acrylic, plexiglass, mirror
48x192

"walking on water"
2021
acrylic, plexiglass, mirror
60x144

"day dreamer"
2021
acrylic, plexiglass, mirror
72x128

NATALYA BURD "Travel Diaries" acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror

"memories"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
72x128

"song for someone"
2021
acrylic, plexiglass, mirror
48x96

"travel diaries"
2021

Jack Fischer Gallery, San Francisco, CA
installation view

"chandelier"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
32x62

"bite the dust"
2021
acrylic, plexiglass, mirror
48x96

"little things"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
12x24

"puddle"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
16x23

"day dreaming of the work in progress "
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
32x50

"town of silence"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
32x96

" the lethe"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
24x120 or 36x72

"by your side"
2021
acrylic, two layers of plexiglass, mirror
12x24

"travel diaries"
2021

Jack Fischer Gallery, San Francisco, CA
installation view

Imagine the ocean
dry as lavender.
Imagine branches
ceasing to be perches
for the birds.
And then on the horizon
imagine death
in its pallor of pallors
letting the dead
live again.
Andre Chedid 1978.

I have always liked to travel. I enjoy discovering new counties, cultures, unforgettable landscapes, different people, and stories that I pick up along the way.
Then Covid-19 came and I couldn't just get an airplane ticket and leave the country in order to seek new adventures. Instead, I found comfort in visiting many parks in California, Nevada, and Oregon. I enjoyed observing changes of colors, movements of the light, the mysterious sound of roaring water coming and going and its perpetual contemplation, the wind blowing through the desert, and seeing limitless rugs of dry vegetation that covered old abandoned ghost towns. Sitting next to ancient bristlecone pines made me think that my life is just a brief moment compared to the lifespan of the surrounding forest. Looking at the desert, it was hard to imagine that at some point this never-ending sea of sand was a breezy ocean. I transferred these travel experiences to my new series of work “travel diaries”.
I moved towards saturated colors of plexiglass and reflections of mirrors as a primary surface to create the paintings. By using intense color saturation and playing with the reflective quality of the colored plexiglass and the mirror, I am able to push the boundaries of flat surfaces, creating a shimmering atmosphere that demonstrates the glimmer of passing moments in time. Working with Plexiglas material at a large scale gives me the opportunity to play with illusion and perspective to recreate the experience of being inside of nature and prompts viewers to take time to reflect on their lives and appreciate the natural world around them.