Trinh Nguyen Ways & Means

Trinh Nguyen
Ways & Means

October 5 - December 22, 2007

Opening reception: October 4, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Robert Lehman Gallery

Exhibition: October 5 - November 11, 2007
Now extended to December 22!
Opening Reception: Thursday, October 4, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Glassblowing Demonstration: Sunday, October 7, 12:00 - 5:00 pm

UrbanGlass is pleased to announce the first New York solo exhibition of artist Trinh H. Nguyen, Ways & Means.

Nguyen works within a minimalist tradition, reducing his visual vocabulary to its most formal elements, though working with those elements in a way in which they create depth and warmth. The exhibition includes two sculpture series and one painting series.

The first series is based on natural forms, modular parts brought together to create a more interesting whole. These parts are assembled into graceful, dynamic forms to create visual rhythms and repetitions that the artist describes as ‘systems.' In this work, the juxtaposition of glass and steel transcends the cold, rigid, intrinsic traits of the materials to create a symbiotic relationship and a new form.

In the second series, the viewer is invited to see the development of the artist's vision from older work in muted colors to new work in warm colors. These sculptures appear architectonic, but closer examination reveals a deeper expanse than the forms originally suggest. Early in his work, Trinh made the most of the juxtaposition of his chosen elements; in his new work, he pushes their most significant difference - transparency versus opacity - even further with his use of color.

Nguyen uses warm color, reds and purples, which are more vibrant then his traditional palette of dark greens and blues to both add contrast to the work and draw the eye's attention deeper into the layers of glass. From the steel-framed architectural pattern, one looks into the glass and sees echoes of patterns and shapes which are sometimes visible, sometimes shadows, the remnants of the innovative casting process Nguyen uses to create the glass.

Although Nguyen began his artistic life as a painter, he found himself fascinated by glass. Eventually, his interest in using glass' transparency led him back to experimenting with painting. Several of his paintings will be on view; they reflect the same interests he portrays in glass: organic patterns, modular forms and expressive use of color.