Today we’d like to introduce you to Alan Neider.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
My fondest memories growing up are with my grandparents. My grandfather painted the outside of his house each summer and the inside each winter. When he wasn’t painting he would sew clothing. My grandmother made ceramic figures and did number paintings. I was beyond thrilled when I was given my first number painting set. My love of working with my hands, painting and creating stem from my grandparents. ART is what defines me since making work consumes me.
Please tell us about your art.
Making ART that challenges/excites/informs me and the viewer of my work is a major driving force in my practice. Materiality is the theme that has run through my work since the mid 1960’s when I became serious about making art. These materials include paint, clay, wood, metal, plaster, paper, cardboard, fabric and others. Creating meaning and emotional substance from these materials whether the form is ceramic vessels, large paintings, outdoor sculptures or the current work on moving blankets, has been the primary motivator for me. The materials and the way they are applied are uncommon, unusual and demanding to work with. It often takes a good deal of ‘looking’ for me to understand what the work is about. I pack my pieces with a lot of visual information. The viewer must ’stop and look.’ I am sewing fabrics and deconstructed clothing onto moving blankets, when the sewing is complete I begin the painting process. I am ‘painting’ with the fabric: that is I am choosing color, texture and pattern in the same way I choose and mix colors. I have used this method in my practice for three and a half years. I work on the ten paintings at the same time and finish each stage in the process before moving on to the next.
Given everything that is going on in the world today, do you think the role of artists has changed? How do local, national or international events and issues affect your art?
For me ‘making ART’ is a buffer against the awful events that have occurred and continue to occur here in the US and around the world. My work doesn’t have a ‘message’ for the viewer other than what all abstract art has always been about: dealing with form, shape, color and their interaction.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
PUBLIC ART COMMISSIONS
“Lake Dance”, Free-standing Painting on Navy Pier, Chicago, IL. 1979
“Untitled” Wrapped 2000 yds. of painted canvas on columns in Federal
Plaza, Chicago, IL. 1979
“Double Boat”, Painting for conference room, City of Chicago, IL. 1980
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Gallery L, Montclair, NJ, 2018
Art-3 Gallery, Bushwick, NY, 2017
‘Dressing Up: Recent Work’, New Haven, CT, 2013
‘Curtains & Dresses: The Fall Collection, Gallery 305K, Bridgeport, CT. 2011
Henri Gallery, Washington, DC, 1988
‘Curtains’, Nancy Lurie Gallery, Chicago, IL. 1981
Jan Cicero Gallery, Chicago, IL. 1980
Illinois Arts Council Gallery, Chicago, IL. 1977
Henri Gallery, Washington, DC, 1976
Contact Info:
- Address: 230 Helen St.
Hamden, CT 06514 - Website: alanneider.com
- Phone: 203 362-9617
- Email: aneider52@gmail.com
- Instagram: aneider52
- Facebook: A NEIDER ART WORKS
Image Credit:
Alan Neider, Joan Fitzsimmons
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