Nick Lamia. Coppice

Jason McCoy Gallery is pleased to present a site-specific installation by New York based artist Nick Lamia, which will incorporate a group of new paintings and works on paper.

Nick Lamia’s paintings, drawings and installations explore concepts of space by means of abstraction. In his work, the picture plane or the confines of a specific location transform into a vibrant meeting ground for opposites. Lamia rhythmically contrasts concrete shapes rendered in opaque hues with gestural marks and translucent layers. He further navigates between geometry and biomorphism, deep and shallow space, overt and restrained gestures, as well as saturated and de-saturated fields. The results are compositions, in which the eye travels from almost purist presentations of color to areas that evoke architectural drawings or map-like constructs. Though Lamia’s vocabulary at times alludes to aerial views of elaborate geographical formations or urban infrastructures, for example, it remains open to interpretation. Lamia encourages association without providing specific references.

Lamia’s site-specific installation is inspired by coppicing, a traditional method of woodland management. The latter takes advantage of the fact that many treesmake new growth from the stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, young tree stems are repeatedly cut down to near ground level. To Lamia, the practice represents an intentional merging of man and nature. He states: “By titling my work “Coppice” I am not advocating coppicing as a practice, but rather employing the term to symbolize a philosophy wherein man actively pursues and attempts to build a mutually beneficial relationship with nature.” Lamia’s installation features a stem-like center from which wall drawings and three-dimensional elements develop like eager growth. Each branching element extends and unfolds throughout the gallery space. By incorporating abstract paintings and several drawings of stumps found in New York City parks, Coppicetransforms into a complex contemplation of destruction and regrowth.

Nick Lamia lives and works in New York. Before receiving his MFA in painting from Boston University in 2000, he studied Environmental Science at U.C. Berkeley. Lamia was recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2003. Recentexhibitions include projects at the Bronx Museum of Arts, NY and the Maine Center for Contemporary Art. This past winter he completed a residency program at Wave Hill, NY. This will be Nick Lamia’s first solo show with the gallery.

Nick Lamia
Coppice