May 6 - May 31, 2011
by Carol Knowles
In Harrington Brown's current exhibition, "Two Rivers," the swatches of color on the surfaces of David Hinske's paintings look as shot through with light as the Taos home in which he works. The rhythms of Hinske's brushstrokes — by turns staccato and fluid, impastoed and full-throated — mirror improvisations of the jazz music playing in the background.
basil (in a can by the window), 40"x40", oil on canvas
In works like In the Kitchen, Digging in the Pantry, and Basil (In a Can by the Window), what looks abstract is most real for this painter/chef/musician who multi-tasks. Hands on the meal prep as well as on his brushes — slathering oils onto canvases as high-key as the notes of a sax, pulling sprigs of fresh herbs from orange-lipped canisters, and peeling/slicing/dicing tomatoes and yellow peppers for the soup simmering in a kitchen that also serves as one of Hinske's studio spaces: Everything is in motion.
David Hinske responds:
I do, in fact, believe that the participation in the arts crosses over into other arts and more generally into the artist's life overall. Participating in the crafting of food and music undoubtedly plays a part in the construction of my paintings, adding flavors and harmonies that would've been otherwise undiscovered. There are places of bliss in all of those things for me and they serve to distinguish the paintings rather than dilute them. While the paintings themselves appear immediate and simple, that is a thoughtful and deliberate choice I've made. Further consideration, I believe, will reveal a deeper understanding of the intimate communication I am intending with the viewer.