We are spoiled by color. It’s everwhere we look, bright colors to attract our attention. Many contemporary painters make a point of using bright, vibrant colors to do just that. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but often we miss noticing the other characteristics of painting that we take for granted.
Charlie Hunter is a painter from Vremont who strips away the surface of bright color and reveals the bones of good painting: value. His paintings make it clear that value is what carries the load in painting, and color is the icing on the cake.
Perhaps I’m mixing my metaphors, but a look at some of the paintings I’ve used as examples, above, should make clear what I’m talking about; they’re so strong and complete in their monochromatic view of the world. Hunter does occassionaly add a touch of color to some of his work, but his usual addition to the value statements is his wonderful use of texture.
His website features examples of his work, as well as information about workshops, and links to his YouTube channel, which includes demos and “Reasonably Fine Art Talks”.
Charlie Hunter’s work will be on display in a solo show at William Baczek Fine Arts in Northhampton, MA from Saturday, October 14 to November 11, 2023. The opening is Saturday, October 14 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm.
You can see more of his work on the gallery’s ongoing page for him, as well as on some of the other sites linked below.
For more, see my previous post on Charlie Hunter (from 2013).
