Kati Vilim: Radius of Action

SILVERMAN AND MAJESTIC THEATRE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION present
Kati Vilim: Radius of Action

Opening Reception: July 8, 2015, 6–8 p.m.

The Majestic Theatre Condominiums
222 Montgomery Street
Jersey City, NJ 07302
201.435.8000

Exhibition on view in the lobby from July 8, 2015 — October 31, 2015

Kati Vilim, 36 squares, 2011, oil, canvas on wood, 48 x 48 inches

“I am fascinated by the discoveries available through the physicality of paint, color and a simple shape as the square and how these sensory experiences can opening up our awareness and elevate us.” — Kati Vilim

SILVERMAN AND THE MAJESTIC THEATRE CONDOMINIUMS ASSOCIATION present “Kati Vilim: Radius of Action,” curated by Brendan Carroll. This exhibition features seven hard-edge color paintings that were made between 2007 and 2012. Each painting is oil on canvas mounted on wood panel.

Vilim’s straight-faced paintings assert themselves like a prizefighter’s stiff jab. They open up space. She is a master colorist and composer of simple flat shapes, which often have more than three straight lines. In her compositions, both regular and irregular forms jostle, intersect, and overlap to create a dynamic sense of depth, space, and movement. That said, the primacy of the picture plane is never broken. Flatness is key. Surfaces unruffled.

Kati Vilim, 3d2d, 2011, oil, canvas on wood, 48 x 48 inches

Color perception — which involves psychology, physiology, biology, chemistry and physics — is one of the central concerns in Vilim’s work. Due to its complexity, she uses a back-to-basics approach to color, which is formal and playful. Most of her work feature a specific set of colors: cyan, magenta, yellow, red, green, and blue. They appear in unspoiled fields — pure, unrepentant, bold. Often, she pits opposing colors next to each other in confined settings, which seemingly advance and recede in perpetual motion. The results are electrifying. What unifies her work is their strong sense of color, clean lines, impersonal execution, and hard edges.

Preliminary drawings provide the foundation for each painting. In this stage, improvisation is not only welcome, but it is also encouraged. For Vilim, works on paper give her the freedom to try multiple ideas. “After testing a few different directions, the final design usually develops itself,” Vilim notes. “I define all the details, and based on that drawing, I start to work on the painting.”

Kati Vilim, Crossing Beyond, 2011, oil, canvas on wood, 48 x 70 inches

Here are Vilim’s reasons why she prefers abstraction:

“I became interested in abstraction just as I started to paint. It is hard to answer why I started to work with structure and abstract shapes instead of figures or narratives. When I thought about it later, it did become clear that abstraction is important not only for me but for every human. It is part of our everyday life, although we might be not aware of that.”

What I find so intriguing about Vilim’s abstract paintings is how they require, and reward, sustained attention. I imagine some people may find them easy to dismiss, but they’d be foolish to do so.

Kati Vilim is an internationally recognized abstract artist. She investigates the visual language as an abstract system, creating new content based on algorithms, color theory and rhythmic patterns. Her media ranges from oil painting, printmaking and drawing, to electric light installation and digital animation. Her work has been featured in numerous galleries and museums, including The Harold B. Lemmerman Gallery, NJCU, Jersey City, NJ; Sheldon Museum of Art, Lincoln, NE; Walsh Gallery, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ; Paul Robeson Galleries, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ; Gallery of Modern Art, Veszprem, Hungary, and Panepinto Galleries, Jersey City, NJ, to name a few. The Brooklyn Rail, Hyperallergic, and Jersey City Independent have reviewed her work. Vilim received her MFA from both, University of Fine Arts, Budapest, Hungary and Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ. Vilim was born in Budapest, Hungary. She lives and works in Jersey City, NJ.

The exhibition will be on view at Majestic Theatre Condominium Association through October 31, 2015. For further information, please visit us at SILVERMAN or call number (201) 435-8000.

“Kati Vilim: Radius of Action” is the twenty-sixth exhibition that Brendan Carroll will organize for SILVERMAN. For additional information on the artist, go here: Kati Vilim.

Transportation directions from Lower Manhattan to downtown Jersey City.