Ray Waterhouse was pleased to present Doug Argue paintings in a joint exhibition with 1014: Space for Ideas. 

Doug Argue's thirty year career has harnessed a striking body of abstract and representational works exploring color, movement, light and rhythm. His deep intrigue for historical references spanning music, literature, science and art culminates in a bold compositional approach; guiding the viewer in and out of his paintings. Our selection of work highlights two series: his previous text based approach, and the more recent figural aquatic studies. The juxtaposition of these subjects highlights their similarities where movement and depth are brought to the forefront by his palette and layering techniques. 

Argue explores abstraction syntactically through paragraphs, sentences, words and letters in a text-based approach. Drawing inspiration from the rhythmic movement found in monumental Venetian painting compositions by masters such as Tintoretto and Titian, Argue composes large groups of text that appear and dematerialize across the surface. Distortion, elongation, and layering add perceptual depth to his oeuvre, reinforced by his use of color and a layered patterning of computer generated stencils.

 

His most recent body of work reveals a world beneath the ocean surface, depicting a myriad of fish and coral in fluid orchestrations of biomorphic forms and geometric shapes. Plunging down from bright colors, possibly warmer waters, the schools of fish depicted in his new paintings share the same fate, the unknown. Argue’s new subjects convey a tireless momentum of regeneration. The fish act as a reactionary field like our own collective unconscious. Poignant post initial pandemic that the group is so tightly compacted, and yet somehow coping as a singular, vibrant living organism.

 

 

For any inquiries on the works by Doug Argue, please contact us at info@modernfineart.com or at (212) 717-9100.