Don Christensen’s ‘Wood Paintings in a Wood Barn’

The Arts Center at Duck Creek presents “Don Christensen: Wood Paintings in a Wood Barn.” The exhibition will be on display in the John Little Barn and the grounds at Duck Creek from April 29 to June 4, with an opening reception on Saturday, April 29, from 5 to 7 p.m. The artist will give a talk about his exhibition on Sunday, May 21, at 3 p.m.

In this show, Christensen reflects on the barn’s history and renovation with an installation of paintings on locally found wood and furniture. A veteran East End artist, Christensen works primarily in the language of geometric abstraction, employing a keen understanding of color relationships to create playful and spatially complex compositions.

Inside the barn, Christensen presents a series of salvaged wood paintings, constructed from individually painted panels mosaicked together in rectilinear patterns. As in many of Christensen’s previous bodies of work, these abstract reliefs are titled after specific places and events. While some of the spatial references are more overt — as in “Bwari Market,” in which a consecutive row of arches connotes a roof-like structure, and grid lines and painted shims imply windows and doors — other works appear purely formal, though gesture toward place by way of color palette, rhythm, and depth.

Throughout the grounds, Christensen will install a new series of “sign paintings.” These large-scale constructions resemble traditional signage, but replace didactic or informational language with evocative planes of color.

As a musician, Christensen finds a corollary between his interest in abstract art and instrumental music.

“The emotionality that may come out of a piece of music may strike a lot of people the same way or in similar ways, but nobody could say exactly what it is,” said Christensen.

Working in this nonreferential arena, Christensen invites viewers to respond to the innate character of these salvaged materials and the formal relationships he’s invented within them.

Christensen was born in Nebraska and he draws influence from a lifetime of experience as an active participant in the worlds of music and visual arts, including stints at the studios of Kenneth Noland, Larry Poons and Jules Olitski, and collaborations with pioneering musical projects such as The Bush Tetras, The Philip Glass Ensemble and Brian Eno. In the late 1980s, Christensen “discovered” the work of outsider artist, Emery Blagdon, in a barn in the Sandhills of Nebraska. Blagdon’s courage to pursue his calling in an isolated rural environment with little or no support or recognition combined with the inventiveness of his artworks would become one of Christensen’s greatest influences, and lead him to more fully embrace a visual arts practice. Christensen has since developed into a prolific painter, drawing influence from the color field movement, and the mystical geometries of Piet Mondrian. He is currently based in Springs.

For more information, visit duckcreekarts.org. The Arts Center at Duck Creek is at 127 Squaw Road in East Hampton.