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Exhibition
Information
It
is a rare and celebrated occasion when an artist is
discovered that has a unique talent, fresh vision
and exceptional ability to transcend artistic predisposition.
Painter Michael Flohr is just such an artist. Flohr's
work is a visual adventure. Not only in its exquisite
beauty, obvious artistic integrity and the emotion
elicited in every work of art, but in the artist's
ability to effect the invention of a genre unique
and true in and of itself in today's contemporary
art world. Depicting ordinary moments in extraordinary
ways, Flohr's work is an intellectually artistic mastery
of color, perspective, technique and vision. Blazing
a trail that is sure to influence the eyes of fine
art collectors around the world, Flohr's work is also
sure to impact other emerging artists for years to
come. Michael Flohr is a young California artist,
currently living and working in San Diego where he
was born and raised. Recognizing his artistic aptitude
at a very early age, Flohr's parents enrolled him
in his first art class at the age of five. His family's
perpetual encouragement and conviction in his talents
led him to pursue a degree at the San Francisco Academy
of Art College. At the academy, Flohr was able to
experiment with all types of media and artistic styles.
In 1999, Flohr's propensity for illustration was recognized
by his acceptance into New York's Society of Illustrators,
where he joined the ranks of legendary predecessors
such as Norman Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish and N.C.
Wyeth. He was awarded the Herman Lambert scholarship
by the Society in the following year. Flohr graduated
from the Academy of Art in 2000 and was honored with
"Best of Show" for his painting titled, "Irish Coffee"
at the Academy's spring exhibition that same year.
Shortly thereafter, three of Flohr's paintings were
selected for exhibition at the de Young Museum, San
Francisco's oldest public museum located in Golden
Gate Park. There, his work hung in the company of
other master painters including one of Flohr's most
revered inspirations, Claude Monet. Boasting acceptance
into a museum environment so early into his artistic
career is a sure indication that this is an emerging
artist to be watched. In a contemporary art world
that has craved a fresh, new approach in the creation
of effectual works of art, Flohr fills this void with
his series of paintings that cover subject matter
ranging from nightlife scenes, cityscapes, still lifes
and figurative portraiture. Flohr's work is largely
urban in content, frantic in execution yet solemn
in interpretation. His paintings have an eerie ability
to capture a fleeting moment, as if from a peripheral
vision, resulting in a permanent "déjà vu" for the
outsider looking in. Bordering the surreal, yet strangely
familiar, Flohr's images capture what seem to be the
artist's furious study of a gloriously regular moment
in time. A moment it seems in which many can relate.
The artist's paintings are a patchwork of avant-garde,
impressionistic color exhibiting a stylistic fortitude
that succeeds in redefining impressionism and abstract
expressionism. Static movement is uniquely portrayed
in his work through his brushstroke technique, masterful
use of light and sumptuous, yet somber color. Flohr
states, "There is a flow that I try to keep in my
paintings that evolves into a story of colors and
movement that breathe together. A coronation of small,
square strokes of premeditated color create the rhythm
throughout a piece. Then I combine them with broad
brush strokes that serve to 'marry' the elements together.
I approach each canvas with 'aggressive subtleness'.
My goal as a modern impressionist is to capture a
gesture and a mood, not necessarily every pore on
the face of a person depicted in one of my paintings.
I want my figures to be a part of the painting, not
the painting itself. They work together in the environment
creating the movement and emotion in a piece. I like
to show light and how it travels, where it lands and
how it can change color. Light alone can change the
look or the mood of a place." Ultimately, it is these
qualities in Flohr's work that predominate in its
appeal. Flohr claims his biggest inspiration in creating
his art is everyday life. He protests, "I have a huge
passion to record humanity on canvas, the good and
the bad, it is all beautiful to me." He strives to
express the familiar in his work and communicate a
common thread among his subjects and his viewers.
"I want to tell a story with substance," Flohr admits.
And he achieves this with a genius of insight and
artistic wherewithal unique to his work and a man
of his young years. A trip to Europe upon his graduation
from the Academy was influential in his interest in
European culture and proved to be an enlightening
experience for the artist and his work. It was this
experience that led him to pursue the desire to capture
the nuances of social interaction, city nightlife
and cityscapes as subject matter for his art. The
artist states, "Seeing strangers intermingle in strange,
new places is an inspiration to me. I am the guy that
can be found out with friends in a café and notice
a beautiful, warm, orange-violet light chipping on
peoples' faces across the room. I am immediately distracted
and thinking of ways to combine color and capture
that moment in my next painting." Flohr admits to
being inspired by the all-important and influential
works of impressionist artists throughout history,
specifically: Pissaro, Monet, Manet and Degas. Like
these artists, Flohr prefers to work in oils and comments,
"I love oil paint because of its durability and the
richness it brings to the canvas. I also believe that
most people with an appreciation for art respect an
artist's use of this classic medium." Flohr does not
work with static models. Instead, he will sketch "in
the moment" as a scene unfolds, most often with charcoal.
Many times, his sketches will become works of art
in themselves. On occasion, the artist will work with
candid photographs. Capturing the visual clues in
a scene is imperative to Flohr as he considers the
"overwhelming choices of color" used to create his
interpretation of an image. The artist comments, "Observation
is everything for me. Whether it is seen, heard or
read, it is all connected to that which can be processed
into a visual." Michael Flohr's passion for his art
parallels his passion for life. As he strives to be
true to himself, his family and friends, he admits
his fiancée, Melissa "is my biggest, new-found inspiration
in a way I cannot describe." As he grows as a person
and evolves as an artist, enthusiasts of the arts
are sure to enjoy the fruits of his commentaries on
the world around him - and in the end, the one that
surrounds us all.
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