Ampersand is pleased to present Foreign Languages, David Wien’s first solo exhibition in Portland since showing long ago with our old neighbors next door at Together Gallery. His figures and landscapes have always existed somewhere in the realm of folklore and storytelling, skillfully set in a simple manner that deliberately brings to mind the work of an outsider. Though unmistakably cast in his singular style, the new paintings drift further into abstraction, a mix of stacked shapes, tangled lines and faces that are mask-like and clownish. A sunset oceanscape and a pot of flowers are most recognizable for what they are, but even they are built from monochromatic shapes that lack the flourishes and fine details of reality. While citing the work of Léger, Klee and Stuart Davis alongside many contemporary influences, Wien also emphasizes the fact that most of his inspiration comes from deep within his own imagination. And though the landscape and culture of the Lost Coast of Northern California (where he lives) does not directly enter his painting, Wien admits that working there, isolated from trends and scenes, allows him to paint from his own point of reference, in his own language, even while speaking in a global conversation from this remote place.

David Wien lives and works in Petrolia, California. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York. His prints, wood carvings and paintings have been widely exhibited, including most recently at 934 Gallery in Columbus, Ohio.

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Here and There, 2016
Oil on canvas
10 x 8 in.
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