Mixed media abstracts by Andrew Black
Reception: Sunday, July 26, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

“The Art of Play” represents mostly current works produced by Andrew Black over the last three years. “Creating is certainly a critical part of who I am,” Andrew says. “And the process of creating is what feeds and fulfills me. For me, the process of working my way through a painting, a drawing, a sculpture or a craft is the core reason for making art. The act of trial and error, success and failure, try and try again, is my happy place. I find, in essence, that creating art is a form of play. I have always found joy in experimentation – or put another way, ‘playing around.’ There is a freedom in removing constraints. There is knowledge in making mistakes, whether accidental or intentional. There is fulfillment in the process. There is value in breaking the rules. Every day spent creating is a day embracing my inner child and the art of play.”

Andrew Black graduated from James Madison University and worked as a Graphic Designer for over 37 years. He has been creating some form of art for as long as he can remember – from drawing cartoons copied out of the Sunday comics section as a young child to a variety of abstract artwork today. Andrew is currently retired and devotes most of his time to creating his art. He lives in Reston, Virginia, with his wife, Candice, an accomplished artist as well, his mother-in-law, Carole, and their cat, Olive.

A Few Thoughts on Art
“I don’t know who said it, but one of my favorite quotes is ‘I can imagine a world without art, but I wouldn’t want to live there.’ I feel the same way. Art is important and I enjoy creating abstract art because I feel it helps focus my attention and energy on composition, color or texture rather than how well I have rendered an object, place or person.  I approach working in the abstract as an exploratory process, experimenting with one idea after another, following them wherever they take me – often in unexpected directions. The process or the journey is what feeds and delights me.”

“As a retired graphic designer, I’m also aware that we are surrounded by design. From the clothes we wear to the cars we drive or from the computers, pads or phones we use to the content we view on them – all were designed by someone. We are surrounded by millions of creative decisions wherever we go.”

“Design and art are connected at the hip. Both involve the creative process. I think the difference between design and art is that design is creativity with a purpose. Art, on the other hand, is pure creation – creation just for creation’s sake. It is the happy accidents and the act of trial and error that are the true soul of an art piece. A lot of my time as an artist is spent staring at a work and making adjustments or rejecting previous decisions until it feels right. It’s like solving a puzzle.  You keep working at it, trying this piece and that one, until everything fits into place. I create because it fulfills me and I share my art in the hope that others get some enjoyment out of it as well.”