Robert McCurdy Untitled 2003 Oil on canvas 60 x 48 inches

Berry-Hill Galleries is pleased to present Robert McCurdy, an exhibition of paintings from 2000 to the present. This is Robert McCurdy's inaugural exhibition at Berry-Hill Galleries. The exhibition will be on view from Friday, October 3rd through Saturday, October 25th, 2003.

McCurdy's paintings are not portraits. They are of people but not about them. In his words, "The sitter is not the subject." McCurdy's subject is, in essence, formed only as the viewer engages the painting bringing his own experience to it. The viewer meets the gaze of a stranger and thus the true subject of the painting is the experience of confronting that stranger.

McCurdy begins every sitting with a photo shoot to record his subject on film. He chooses one shot from the sitting. He then uses this "moment" as a reference when he moves to canvas. He writes, "During the sitting, I look for a sustainable moment; one where there is no before or after. It is why there is no movement, no expression or gesture. Rather than slicing time or capturing a moment, I'm interested in drawing it out, in making it resonate." Each one of McCurdy's compositions is fundamentally the same. The sitter faces us straight on, against a white background wearing clothing. The field of white space eliminates any reference to time and place. The only personal information we are permitted is in the clothing which McCurdy allows the sitter to choose. He explains this as the one random element in his work.

McCurdy records his subjects in great detail. Ultimately, his paintings constitute literally millions of small decisions executed in minute brushstrokes. His technique is a considered effort, meticulously and painstakingly rendered in oil. In his words, "The image is reported rather than interpreted. The technique is calculated to minimally filter the experience. There are no clues as to how the viewer should feel."

Robert McCurdy was born in 1952 in Pennsylvania. He received a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, and an Arts Fellowship at Yale University.