Greg Minah’s exhibition at Goucher College beautifully showcases the development of his work and artistic process from a pivotal residency at Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency in 2008 through the present, most recent work. Doreen Bolger, Director of the Baltimore Museum of Art, writes in the catalog for this exhibition, “To fully appreciate the beautiful works that follow from his time at Joshua Tree National Park, you need to understand exactly how they are created. His work emerges from a fascinating working process – it borders on performance – and from his active and intentional exploitation of the possibilities of his materials, specifically acrylic paint, which is water soluble but becomes water resistant when dry… Minah works on two or three paintings at a time, creating images that can stand singly, in pairs, or in series… As he progresses in his work on these stretched canvases, they stand side-by-side on a narrow wooden shelf (a self-created easel), above a 10-foot-long gutter that catches the dripping paint or water he later uses to wash away areas of color. Each surface is built up in layers, with reiterative pours.”
Detail image of Greg Minah’s “the scaffolding to remain” (2011) exhibited at Goucher College
Greg Minah’s “the scaffolding to remain” (2011) in Shifting Ground exhibition at Goucher College
Circular lace-like shapes layered on top of each other blend in vibrant hues of blue, lavender, pink, and red. Just below the surface darker shadows tangle together, deepening the pool of colors. In the earlier 2010 series, the thicker lacing of darker and lighter layers push the central shapes forward in a “slow-motion film” effect. There’s a sense of flowing movement that evokes an imaginary sea-creature as the flow of water creates movement in the tendrils of color.
Greg Minah’s Shifting Ground exhibition at Goucher College. “almost axiomatic” (2010) on the left.
The earliest works in the exhibition show canvas surfaces with less textured spaces with central lattice-like areas of dripped paint and spherical and circular shapes and curves of washed, muted color. In “similar prejudices” (2008), the grid-like effect of the green dripped paint lines also includes scratched black lines that connect downwards into the shadowed spheres gathering at the bottom of the canvas.
Greg Minah’s Shifting Ground exhibition at Goucher College. Works from 2008.
Detail image of Greg Minah’s “similar prejudices” (2008) exhibited at Goucher College
If you know my own crazy use of color in my fiber art work, it should be no surprise that I love the saturated vibrant colors of Minah’s 2012 series. The scale of these canvases is also a factor in my appreciation for the depth and intricate details across such a wide surface. I especially liked the “traditional factors” (2012) which is 70″ x 70″ with exquisite pools of lavender, greens, and blues that are surrounded by these thread-like curls of electric orange and fiery pink-red hues that make the entire piece glow.
Detail image Greg Minah’s “traditional factors” (2012) exhibited at Goucher College
Greg Minah’s Shifting Ground exhibition at Goucher College’s Rosenberg Gallery
There’s a lightness in the most recent work that is achieved by the multiple layers and delicate lines. The dripping pathways now outlines of absent color, removed in the process, and overall textural details are now like catching glimpses of specific patterns in enormity of a snowstorm or in the movement of leaves. The individual details move together in the greater patterns of swirling shapes and waves of motion.
Detail image of Greg Minah’s “a priori unities” (2014) exhibited in Shifting Ground at Goucher College
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