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ANTICIPATING THE PAST,

NOSTALGIC ABOUT THE FUTURE

Welcome to my blog - I've been expecting you. Hope to see more of you in the coming months.

- Alexi

Above: Front cover for VAROUFAKIS ( prog rock band ), Jan 2020

All artwork and photography in this blog is by Alexi K, reproduction by permission only. 

Above: VAROUFAKIS ( outtake ), Jan 2020

NEW PAINTING

As Yet Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 50cm x 50cm, June 2018.

( Photo taken at midday. )

Same painting, different angle ( photo taken at sunset. )

NEW WORK IN PROGRESS

PROGRESSIONS

Untitled, acrylic on canvas, 60cm x 60cm.

Below: Extreme Close-Up,taken today [ 23rd Jan 2018 ].

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Below: Close Up, angle shot Dec 29 2017

Below: Jan 3rd 2018

Below: Jan 4th 2018

Below: Jan 23rd 2018

PENCILLED IN

As mentioned in the previous post, November's work-in-progress is now out of bounds due to being on display at Custard Factory. This has necessitated starting a new piece before the other is finished. The difference, is that this time I am making pencil shapes first, rather than automatically painting onto the blank grid. Whether this will result in a piece of work that looks significantly different than its two companion pieces is debatable. But at the moment it's a refreshing change to spend longer composing in pencil.

Untitled Work In Progress, Pencil on Canvas, 60cm x 60cm, Dec 2017.

WORK IN PROGRESS (cont'd) DETAIL SHOTS

Work-in-progress, as featured in the SOLSTICE exhibition, currently in the Nomad Room at Custard Factory, Birmingham UK, until February 2018. Curated by Zarina Keyani.

Untitled Work In Progress, Acrylic & Biro on Canvas, 60cm x 60cm, Nov / Dec 2017

WORK IN PROGRESS - DETAILED ANGLE CLOSE-UPS

WORK IN PROGRESS NOV 2017

It's been a while since I've posted anything. The reason for that, is that I've had two other projects on the go simultaneously, so this painting has been on the backburner since the summer. It's the second part of a trilogy, and since I restarted a couple of weeks ago, progress has been pretty brisk. That can only mean one thing: I'm about to do something to it that will take months of correcting ( at least, that's what usually happens when things seem to be going well ).

Acrylic On Canvas, 60cm x 60cm, 2017 

Below: How it started, earlier this year.

Below: ( extreme close-up with harsh light to accentuate contours ) adding colour, and building structure using grid lines by masking alternating strips of canvas.

Below: As it is on 23rd Nov 2017, photographed during the fading light of the afternoon ( it starts to get dark at 4pm in the UK now - very impractical! ).

See the first part of this trilogy-in-progress here.

[ CRACKED ] ENCRYPTION

Even though my paintings look very structured, they still evolve out of a spontaneous process, which is why they sometimes take so long. I start with an empty grid and fill it in. The shapes have to balance ( in 2D as well as the 3D surface layers ), as do the colours. At the same time, the whole thing has to conform to my need for asymmetry. So the editing process involves re-taping, repainting, remixing, over-writing and deleting as I go along.

The net result is a composition that still has to balance, despite all the random elements that went into it. Example: ENCRYPTION ( below ), acrylic on canvas, 2016.

However, having spent most of 2017 experimenting with vector art, I've used what I've learnt to convert some of my paintings into digital replicas, that can be broken up and reorganised. Here are some of the component parts. There's no composition here - I was simply separating parts out on the page to see what I could use. 

Below: ENCRYPTION ( SHAPES ) digital drawing, Sept 2017.

EXTERNAL MEMORY

Facebook just showed me this great close-up pic from a few years back. You can clearly see all the layers that make up my work. This probably shows just a few inches across the surface of the actual painting.

[DIGITAL] ENCRYPTION

'BEAUTIFUL WALL' - WORK IN PROGRESS 'C' : 11 / 11 / 2016

Detail ( below ), showing the use of different surface textures.

I am going to title the current iteration this painting - which is still a work in progress - 'HOMAGE TO BARRAGAN', after my favourite Mexican architect.

People have speculated that the 'Beautiful Wall' that Trump intends to build along the Mexican border, should be painted pink ( see FastCo's article ). This would be in honour of Luis Barragan, an architect known for his clean, modernist designs and bright colours.

Again, I have to stress that this painting ( see below, and also the previous blog entry ) will NOT look anything like this in a few days, because I've decided it needs a drastic and complete overhaul / revision. However, that does not mean that I won't be doing a proper 'Homage to Barragan' at some point. It just won't be this one.

The same goes for the two other works in progress ( see 22nd August & 25th October ). All three still need to be re-edited and remixed until I'm happy with the results.

So until I get around to an appropriate tribute to the great architect Barragan, enjoy the pictures below, and the bright, Latin American colours.

Below: Current ( temporary ) composition, 50cm x 75cm Acrylic On Canvas, Nov 2016.

Detail ( below ). 

WORK IN PROGRESS 'C' : 10 / 11 / 2016 - DETAIL

Acrylic on canvas 50cm x 75cm.

WHAT I SEE WHEN I LOOK AT MY WORK

WORK IN PROGRESS 'B' continues...

Below: Magnified detail shot of current painting.

The current painting ( below ) is still nowhere near satisfactory. To me, it looks dull, and mannered. Like I'm on autopilot, working on it until something inspirational occurs. However, that is not necessarily a bad thing, because every part of its history is recorded and can still be accessed - if you know how to look at it.

Abstraction is like any other form of visual media - it's a kind of prosthetic memory. We can store thoughts outside of ourselves in the form of computers, books, TV, sounds, sculpture and pictures.

From language comes imagery, metaphor and codes; To me, abstraction in art is merely another form of encrypted data. 

I would prefer it if people stood in front of my work and thought about it for a minute. The photographs here are a result of seeing the current piece under the spotlights in my studio, which highlight the details. Seeing the layers, plateaus, and valleys is what's satisfying...even when the painting itself remains unresolved.

Whatever form the final composition takes, all the previous histories will still be there, waiting to be found.

The photographs below are extreme closeups taken from the same painting ( above ). Variations in light quality are due to the artificial light, as it was night-time when the pictures were taken.

Work-In-Progress 'B', Acrylic on Canvas, 60cm x 60cm, 2016.

Go to Feb 2017's BLISS IN CONCRETE to see the final version.

MISSION FROM MARS

Ongoing experimentation, this time with 'MARS BLACK' paint. I'm pretty certain this painting will not look anything like this in another 24 hours. Scroll down through October and September 2016's posts ( further down this page ) to see earlier iterations of the same work.

Acrylic on canvas, 60cm x 60cm

Detail close-ups, below:

WORK IN PROGRESS 'B' - EXTREME CLOSE-UP

Today's developments: Acrylic on canvas 60cm x 60cm.

ABSTRACT DIGITAL

My colleague, fashion designer Antone Douglas, is curating an art and design show called CONCEPT ROOM, at the Custard Factory in Digbeth this weekend ( opens 12pm Friday until 8pm Saturday, 16 - 17 Oct ). I will be debuting my sneakers, and perhaps some digital translations of my abstract paintings, such as the example below.

OUT NOW, COURTESY OF BUCKETFEET: ALEXI K's 'ELECTRONIQUE' SHOE!

Inspired by my love of urban futurism and electronic music, the ELECTRONIQUE is my homage to those things that provide the foundation of my creativity. 

NOTE: This has now sold out. If there are plans to reissue this design, I'll let you know!

( Post updated from 01 / 09 / 2015 )

MESSAGE TO MY RUSSIAN FANS!

Если Вы хотите приобрести мои работы или обсудить возможность организации вернисажа с моими работами, пожалуйста, свяжитесь с моим агентом Ксенией по электронной почте gypsymothahoy [ at ] gmail.com с заколовком "Алексий К". 

Skyline, Pen & Ink on Watercolour Postcard, 2015

Благодарю заранее,

Алексий

ALL THAT JAZZ

As you will see, further down this page, I'm currently experimenting with a particular abstract drawing style based around a grid. Nothing is planned, with the exception of the grid itself. Therefore, it's easy for things to go wrong...or maybe too right. Here is a good example of a piece that looks a bit too neat for its own good. I really wasn't that impressed when I did it...but actually I think it looks great now, and reminiscent of a funky 60s jazz album cover.

Untitled Abstract, ink on watercolour postcard, May 2015

Pen: Rotring isograph .35