Kathryn Markel Fine Arts is pleased to announce an upcoming solo exhibition of new paintings by Erin O’Brien. “These Days” is O’Brien’s first solo exhibition with the gallery. O’Brien’s work juxtaposes human and architectural qualities, pushing and pulling between each. There is a natural component to her work that is visually combated with strict, dense shapes, but the hybrid somehow hums. The collage-like process starts with an initial line drawing that acts as the bones of the painting. She works on linen, and her photographs and sketches inform the starting lines. The exposed linen contrasts the starkness of her paint as an organic element.

“The title of the show, These Days, is taken from Nico’s version of the Jackson Browne song,” O’Brien says. “The song is about loss, sadness, and regret. And while my work holds plenty of the first two, it has none of the third, and actually holds a measure of hope, too. But the title feels fitting for a show of these paintings at this time, when we’ve all been dealing with losses of one kind or another, and uncertainty feels like the only certainty we can rely upon.” she continues.

In what feels like a post-pandemic world, time seems to have two categories: then and now. These days feel distinctly different from life before COVID. This body of work explores the feelings that exist following a major global event.

O’Brien received her MFA from Bard College in 2003, and has since exhibited across the northeast, Georgia, Florida, and Italy. She has completed residencies at Palazzo Monti in Italy, Anderson Ranch Art Center in Colorado, amongst others. She lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.