The Bradley Ertaskiran gallery opens the exhibition on Thursday Surrender by Canadian-American painter Preston Pavlis. A rising star in the contemporary art world both in Quebec and internationally, at just 24 years old he created a vast series of monumental works, fictional portraits of suburbanites inspired by the African-American history of quilting.
The native Californian trained at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design says he favors formal experimentation and the public’s aesthetic experience rather than a quest for political meaning. His title, Surrender (abandonment), evokes both the strong impression that his large format paintings can arouse, and the reverie or the state of floating in which his characters find themselves.
Although he has been painting since childhood, Preston Pavlis has been integrating textiles into his work for several years. All the works in the exhibition, suspended from the ceiling, are made up of oil paintings on one side, and patchworks of fabrics scrounged from flea markets on the other.
“I started by integrating embroidery into my paintings, particularly very small texts, to invite the public to get closer to the works and notice the finer details,” says the artist. Today, textiles are an integral part of his work, which explores the poetic potential of collage of used clothing and which recalls ancestral techniques.
Quilt History
Preston Pavlis cites Gee’s Bend quilts as an influence. “It’s the name of a small village in Alabama, where a group of African-American women developed a particular style over generations. While their covers were originally intended to be functional, they are now presented in museums. Their use of shapes and colors is magnificent. »
Just like these American artisans, the artist uses recycled fabrics in his works, which he assembles into patchworks or collages. “I like the idea of juxtaposing the fictional stories of the characters I represent in painting on one side, and the stories experienced by real people through their discarded clothes on the other. »
Guided by “intuition and poetic associations,” the artist paints portraits of fictional characters in settings inspired by the suburbs of Halifax, among others. “I paint environments that are close to me,” he says, or that refer to metaphors. In Soliloquyfor example, a man standing in front of a fence looks languidly at something that is out of frame.
“I also like the idea of representing or emulating other creative gestures through painting,” explains Preston Pavlis. In Nightroom, we first see a man playing the piano, in close-up. On the other side of the painting, clothes form a house. Through one of the building’s four windows, we can see the pianist in the distance. “I wanted to highlight the contrast between performance on stage and intimacy. »
Rising star
Gallerist Antoine Ertaskiran, who represents the artist with his colleague, Megan Bradley, says he is “impressed by the volume and maturity” of his work. He is not the only one. His works have already been presented in several exhibitions, notably at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Toronto, at the Miami, Toronto and New York fairs, as well as in numerous galleries in London and Beijing. He also won the prestigious student competition 1res works by BMO, in 2019.
Having taken up residence in Halifax, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree after spending a few years in Edmonton, Preston Pavlis says he is “happy to be able to evolve in the Canadian art world, between Montreal and the rest of Canada.” “I left the United States when Donald Trump came to power. It gave me a break from American politics that I needed. »
Megan Bradley wishes to represent the artist for as long as possible. “His work is magnificent and demonstrates impressive technical mastery for his age. He is certainly one of the most promising local artists. »