The first New York solo exhibition of pour paintings by Holton Rower is currently being hosted by The Hole. Filling every gallery at the exhibition space with a total of nineteen enormous pours, Rower varies the pouring technique to produce wildly different effects. From small pours at the entrance of the gallery with “hats”, as the artist calls them (wood protrusions on which the paint is poured and flows down); to medium-sized works, some of which flow onto the floor; to larger works situated near the rear gallery which exist with and without hats, and feature “exclusions” (obstacles placed by the artist that the paint was forced to flow around, which were then removed); to Gallery Three where he shows five tectonic pours: the difference in pours is beautiful and intense. 

 

Rower creates these paintings by pouring layer after layer of doctored paint onto plywood. The paint flows determinedly over the surfaces he creates, timed to dry and spread at just the right rate, slowly engulfing the space before it. The paint occasionally clots and clumps and fractures to create fissures, but the flow moves ever onward - often exuding a sparkling sheen due to reflective elements premixed into its body. Rower's materials are given free-reign, his work is process-driven and relies on forces of nature to create its course and ultimate outcome - one which is physical, aggressive and uncontained. 

 

Born in the psychedelic 60s, Rower grew up working in his father's construction business, where management of weight and bulk was learnt at an early age. The grandson of Alexander Calder, Rower was surrounded by a culture of art making and the influence of inspirational cultural figures. He has developed and perfected his pour technique over the past five years, showcasing the final products in recent shows at Pace last summer and John McWhinnie in New York, while forthcoming projects at Shirazu in London will continue to share these exciting new works with a wider audience.

 

Holton Rower's Pour Paintings runs to May 26th, so make sure you don't miss out. 

 

Source - The Hole NYC

Adam Bryce