Joe McAleer: Artist Statement - "Optic Diamonds" (May 2010)

As an artist I’m fascinated by the aesthetic opportunities concealed in a basic form. I discovered the ‘jumpsquare’ while working on one of my grid paintings in 2007.  I had broken up a 30” by 40” canvas into 2" squares and was painting the squares over and over, always leaving remnants of the previous layer, trying to create satisfying patterns and colors. Nothing seemed to work. I got the idea to combine four of these shapes, creating a new single shape that gave the painting depth and focus. I discovered a form that jumped out or receded into the background depending on where your eye went.

I explored this new spatially ambiguous shape, pushing and pulling it in different directions, but always came back to the original form. I began by painting the jumpsquare often, emphasizing texture and color. I began to incorporate high-quality reproductions, initially as points of departure for color, and then added my own color leaving traces of the original imagery. 

After continued experimentation, my "eureka" moment came when I turned the canvas 45 degrees.  The shape, when viewed diagonally, became dynamic. Since this pivotal experience, I have explored a variety of materials in the creation of optic diamonds.

Recently, my work has explored the quality of the surface of the paint in addition to the geometry of the canvas and its divisions. Working with partially obscured photographs, varying line weight, and an intuitive palette, I have expanded the possibilities of the basic forms that underlie my work, shifting their emphasis to reveal a wide array of visual possibility in a seemingly narrow set of formal options.

Joe McAleer: Artist Statement (2009)

My paintings are the visual record of the artistic experience, validating my journey of the heart and mind. They are the end of a creative crossing.
The "road" an abstract painter travels is vastly different from that of a realistic painter. In representational work, the artist takes his inspiration from what exists in nature. He knows from the inception what he wants the final piece to look like . He follows a clearly defined "map" (difficult as this may be). The hours spent "driving" are exciting, but the road lies clearly ahead. What was in the beginning is at the end..

The abstractionist's journey of the imagination is more like an odyssey. There is no simple explanation of the creative process in abstraction. My paintings never travel a straight route. They rarely end up reflecting my initial thoughts and first sketches. The "road taken" is not a straight highway, nothing is clearly marked and it is filled with constant detours.

With no map to guide me, abstraction is a challenging and almost mystical process. I encounter discoveries at every turn (a new color, a new shape). A "road" taken here or there may put me in a dead end filling me with despair for days or weeks, or it may open up a grand vista. The uncertainty of it all challenges, frustrates and ultimately excites. The hours spent "on the road" stimulate, motivate and exhaust the imagination. I'm hopeful you can sense and share in this experience.