The rules of abstraction

Behind the simple geometric figures, intense colors and abstract landscapes that remind of Rothko and Suprematism, the works of Calvin Ross Carl hide a whole world tied to work and the American working class.

Calvin Carl Ross is the son of a carpenter from the industrial town of Spokane, Washington, which had much influence on his aesthetic research.

He lives and works as a user interface designer in Portland, Oregon, where he graduated in Fine Arts in 2008 and where he creates paintings and sculptures, many of which are displayed in various American galleries. Among these is the collective at Homeland Gallery in Portland "Welcomes Southern/Pacific", which was recently inaugurated.

Under a minimalist and pop veneer with caustic tendencies that is able to attract attention, we discover various layers of significance. Like an onion, when peeled it slowly reveals itself by showing an interest in the myth of the American working class and its work environment.

A subject that Calvin had already approached in his graduate thesis and that in his paintings and sculptures, like in many postmodern images, exfoliates under our very eyes. Every carpet, rag or piece of fabric taken from anonymous offices, is reborn and recomposed into new chromatic combinations. Each of which is moving with its simple cruelty.





















Photos via calvinrosscarl.com