I employ a process driven call & response approach to painting, with the aesthetic goal of balancing shifting degrees of chaos and potential through the orchestration of organic and geometric structures. No matter what the imagery may consist of, the subjects of digression and time are constant themes in my work. I am inspired by diverse sources: patterns (natural & man made), sound waves, cycles, waves, frequencies, urban decay, architectural artifacts, geometry, geology, astronomy, tribal & corporate symbols, icons, technology and commercial graphics. By making art, I endeavor to reveal the power and mystery that is common to them.
I am drawn to the history of things; to the possibility of different outcomes based on combinations of planned decisions and random events. I am intrigued with how small, repetitive actions consistently applied over the course of time, create complex systems that are greater than the sum of their parts. I work by imposing a set of limitations at the start of each painting. This provides an outline for countless variations within the set. As an abstract painter, I use specific shapes and colors, and the ideas of how to compose them, with the intention of creating a poetic language that will stimulate personal thoughts and feelings in each individual viewer. I am fascinated by how simple geometric shapes occur in nature, and over the course of time, entropy affects not just objects, but also feelings and thought processes."
I am also a musician/composer, and I have always seen specific colors associated with musical notes and chords. So, color is a very important aspect of my work, and many of my paintings are based off of music running through my head while I paint.
I like wild cards…random disruptions to patterns, frequency distortions, spontaneous decisions. When making a painting, these anomalies sometimes create the dynamic tension that pushes the work into a higher level, and sometimes they create a new problem to be solved. I find that editing is a big part of my overall approach.
I use acrylics, vinyl, tape, ink, printed paper, pencil, pen and crayons to make paintings. I apply paint many different ways, sometime I squeegee it on with old credit cards and strips of PVC; I press it on with different objects I find in the street, I use razor blades, sandpaper, water, and heat to alter the surfaces. I do gestural brush drawings that sometimes act as a basis for the final painting.
Louis is a Philadelphia, PA based artist and musician. In 1978 he was awarded a full scholarship to The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where he studied figure drawing with Marshall Glasier. In 1990, he made the decision to concentrate solely on painting watercolor landscapes and did so until 2006. Through that sixteen year period, his paintings became more abstract and these ideas set the precedent for his current work. In 1994, at the Wayne Art Center, he won the Myrtle Jarvis Watercolor Award for his large watercolor of Sylvester’s Cove, Maine, and in 2007, at The Main Line Center for the Arts, he received the Canson Paper Prize for the mixed media work entitled “Memories of 54”. In 2016 he had a solo show at The Philadelphia Sporting Club. Recently his paintings have been included in the group shows at the DVAA Gallery, Hindsight, Light, Subjective Perspective, Perennial Visions, Through the Grid, Collective Awareness, In July 2021, his work was picked for the curated show; Up Against a Wall at the Awbury Arboretum. Also in the summer of 2021, he participated in a two person show with Joellyn Ross at Atria. In 2022 he was in the two person exhibit; “Caligiuri and Gribaudo” at the Design Cener East Market, Philadelphia, PA., and recently, he was featured at a juried show at Culture Works, where he will have two paintings included in the upcoming summer show entitled: “Sound and Vision” His paintings and commissions are included in many private collections; 2 of his paintings were purchased by the The Capital One Cafe in King of Prussia, PA., and Saatchiart has made large prints of his work for hotels and Senior Living Facilities.
1978 - 1980
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Full Scholarship
Life-drawing with Marshall Glasier
Critical painting with Bill "EO" Omwake
2021
Permanent Collection, Capital One Cafe, King of Prussia, PA
2007
Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
The Canson Paper Award
2003
16 Emerging Artists, Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA
Featured in Painting Invitational
1993
Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
The Myrtle L. Jarvis Watercolor Award
Lear, Len. "'Art of the City' on display in City Hall", The Philly Record, September 27, 2007.
Donohoe, Victoria. "Art reaps what quilters sewed", The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 27, 2007.
Hagen, Susan. "Raising the Bar", Philadelphia City Paper, July 12-18, 2002
InLiquid
Center for Emerging Visual Artists
Da Vinci Art Alliance
Instagram Time Lapse Videos
2024
InLiquid Toasts 25, Off the Wall Gallery at Dirty Franks, Philadelphia, PA
Sound and Vision, Summer at Culture Works, Philadelphia, PA
Inside Out, Upside Down & Sideways, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
2023
When the Light Comes In, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Group Exhibition, Fall at Culture Works, Philadelphia, PA
2022
Family Room, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Perennial Visions IV, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
When the Light Comes In, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Collective Awareness, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Through the Grid, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Caligiuri and Gribaudo, 2 Person Exhibition, Design Center East Market, Philadelphia, PA
2021
Up Against a Wall, Group Exhibition, Awbury Arboretum, Philadelphia, PA
Curated by Susan Breitsch
Systems of Promise, 2 Person Exhibition with Joellyn Ross, Atria, Philadelphia, PA
New Now Member Show, InLiquid Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Subjective Perspective, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
2020
Light, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
Hindsight, Group Exhibition, Da Vinci Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA
2016
Solo Exhibition, The Philadelphia Sporting Club, Philadelphia, PA
2007
PHOTOgraphy, Group Exhibition, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA
Works on Paper Art, Group Exhibition, The Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
Art of the City, Group Exhibition, Art In City Hall, Philadelphia, PA
65th Painting Invitational, Cheltenham Center For The Arts, Cheltenham, PA
Solo Exhibition, The 4th Street Cafe, Ocean City, NJ
2007 - 1994
Ongoing Solo and Group Exhibitions, Tavern on Green, Philadelphia, PA
2006
64th Painting Invitational, Cheltenham Center For The Arts, Cheltenham, PA
2003
16 Emerging Artists, Cheltenham Center For The Arts, Cheltenham, PA
2002
Solo Exhibition, St. Georges Methodist Church, Philadelphia, PA
1999
Group Exhibition, The Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
1998
Group Exhibition, Cheltenham Center For The Arts, Cheltenham, PA
New Artists, Group Exhibition, Off the Wall Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
1996
Group Exhibition, The Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
1995
Group Exhibition, Phantom Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
1994
The American Flag, Group Exhibition, The Pentimenti Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
1994
Group Exhibition, Phantom Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
1993
Works on Paper, Group Exhibition, The Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
1992
Works on Paper, Group Exhibition, The Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
