Local Artist Launches Word Painting Series

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Provided by the artist

Charleston artist Greg Hart (right) has launched a new word painting series that uses color, geometric shapes, and texture to play with commonplace words and phrases we experience every day.

Here’s some background about the new series and the artist:

Hart's series, comprised of paintings in oil and acrylic on wood panels, reconsiders the words we are endlessly exposed to and no longer notice. The paintings evoke the humor and rhythm of language and are meant to fall somewhere between a koan and a dad joke, with titles such as Poser, Moot Point, and Small Talk. Hart catalogued hundreds of words he heard and saw and read – in conversations, movies, books, emails, ads, phone notifications, and the myriad other ways in which we experience content. His painting process started with an abstract first layer, followed by decal stickers that he painted over. Once the stickers were removed, there was a sense of tension between two paintings. The result is a combination of abstract art, billboard, and color swatch. Hart was inspired by artists like Mel Bochner, Jenny Holzer, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Christopher Wool, Shepard Fairey, Wayne White, and Ed Ruscha.

Hart is best known for his expressive portraits based on historical photographs. His work has been featured in Charleston Magazine, The Jealous Curator, Art Hound, Azalea, Art Mag, Studio Visit, and Four Charlotte; and has been exhibited at The George Gallery, Gris Galerie, Eyedrum, The Southern, Redux, and City Gallery. He is originally from Greenville, SC, has lived in Charleston since 2004, and is a Redux Contemporary Art Center alumnus.

Paintings in Hart's new series start at $200 and are available on his website: https://greg-hart.com/shop