FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kristi Engle Gallery
5002 York Ave.
Highland Park, CA 90042
323.472.6237
kristi@kristienglegallery.com

O'Brien studied printmaking and drawing in Rome with Guido Strazza, the author of the still untranslated manifesto, "Il Gesto e Il Segno: Tecnica dell' Incisione". Strazza explored the relationship between a graphic mark and the gesture that makes it appear. O'Brien was particularly interested in the Informale and Tachisme schools, and specifically their regard for historical etchings and engravings and how an analysis and reformulation of the marks could inspire nontraditional images.

There is little corresponding history of these types of artistic interpretations in the United States (it is not by chance that the most important American artist of this kind of work, Cy Twombly, lives in Italy). Although American, O'Brien was born in Japan and spent the majority of his formative years in Europe. When he returned to the US in the late 80s, he found the American landscape quite alien. Fascinated by the entirely new sets of images and objects that he encountered - from cacti to suburban architecture - O'Brien, while continuing to explore the history of mark making and image coagulation, shifted away from European-style non-referential work.

In the series of works on paper exhibited, "Pagine Veneziane" (Venice Diaries) , O'Brien uses duo tone photographs of Venice, Italy, collaged and interwoven with black/white as well as color abstract marks. Each individual work expresses different states of mind culled from his own memories of Venice. Each also pays homage to an Italian Informale painter, from Fausto Melotti to the lesser known Mario Prassino.

Kristi Engle Gallery devotes itself primarily to solo exhibitions of new works by contemporary artists. It is located in Highland Park, near the corner of Ave. 50 and York Blvd.