Purvis Young, "A Collection of Paintings" on view at ABBA FINE ART October 9 to November 23, 2010

ABBA FINE ART is proud to present a collection of some of the finest paintings created by Purvis Young, "A Collection of Paintings".

William Arnett, an expert in African American vernacular art and co-editor of Souls Grown Deep, says “Almost every day, Young searches the streets of Overtown for materials to incorporate into his artwork.  Young’s paintings are more then paintings.  They are assemblages made from an array of urban detritus carefully selected by the artist according to his sense of their aesthetic and philosophical compatibility.  His haul may include plywood, broken furniture, mirrors, window shades, carpet scraps, splintered wood, metal trays, record albums, wallpaper samples, glass and paper correspondence, manila folders, bank statements, bills, memos – thrown away by small manufacturing plants and offices still remaining on the fringes of the community.  The materials are chosen for more then textures, color, and form:  Young considers each object’s original use, and in his final creation – gathered selected, arranged, nailed or glued together, painted and framed – each component carries its own subtle and high esoteric definition.”

Environmentally conscious and unwilling to contribute to further deforestation, Young’s canvases are made of recycled products including found wood, discarded library books, old political posters, used furniture and various surplus items from construction sites. Items are carefully culled according to the artist’s specific needs. Young’s paint includes latex, acrylic, enamel and combinations of new paint blended with the old that he has had for over 25 years.

Out of necessity, Young has developed a complex painterly language in order to express what he sees and experiences in the world around him in all its unpretentious stark reality.  His symbols convey the on-going economic and cultural divides so prevalent in Miami and beyond, through recurring images of black and while horses, pregnant women, highways and overpasses, convoys of trucks and trains, railroad tracks, airplanes, angels, and Zulu warriors (whom he considers his tribe).

“My feelings was that the world might get better if I put my protests (in the form of paintings),” said Young, in Bill Arnett’s Souls Grown Deep:  African American Vernacular Art. “Even if it didn’t, it was something I had to be doing.  I make like I’m a warrior, like God sending an angel to stop war, like in my art.”

Young painted and studied the world’s history without stopping, so consumed with his art that he rarely saw the light of day. Purvis Young, who prefers to be known solely as a painter, has recently been called an Urban Expressionist Painter.  The artist has spent countless hours studying the masters, especially Rubens, Van Gogh and Delacroix.

Purvis Young’s work is in more than 60 public collections and numerous private ones. His works hangs in many museums across the country, including the American Folk Art Museum, Bass Museum of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Lowe Art Museum, New Orleans Museum of Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Studio Museum or Harlem and amongst many others.

For further information about this exhibition or for a private viewing, please contact the gallery at (305) 576-4278 or via email at art@abbafineart.com 

For press inquiries and image requests, please contact ABBA FINE ART.