TERRA INCOGNITA

My work explores a somatic vocabulary of biomorphic forms evocative of the female body. On a visceral level, the shapes reference body cavities, organs, breasts and bones of the pelvis. Intentionally allusive, they also suggest bulbous guitars, winged creatures and cocoons. I present a variety of vignettes, from the erotic or sensual, to the mundane or comic. I am interested in symmetry, its connection to the human body and its power to evoke an iconic sense of space.

Forms are clearly designated with crisp contours and an unmodulated surface of saturated jewel color. Vertical pours of paint resemble flowing tributaries; they envelop shapes or flow freely on passages of color. Color is an electric force through sulphurous yellow, neon orange, iridescent greys and cartoony pinks. These colors find counterparts in earthy khaki greens, violet oxides and brick reds. This synthetic palette evokes a surreal world.

My paintings play off and respond to the insistent visual messages of our times, animation, social media, iPhone photography, and the use of the screen to view art, while extending a belief in the power of an analog, “handmade” craft, achieved through a process and technique evolved over centuries.

Diane Novetsky is a Somerville, MA painter and a founding member of the Brickbottom Artists’ Association and Building. Her work has been widely shown throughout the region including the Art Complex Museum in Duxbury, Galatea Fine Arts Gallery, Danforth Museum of Art, Tufts University Aidekman Gallery, Nave Gallery, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Brickbottom Artists’ Building and the Boston Convention Center. Diane’s work is included in many private as well as corporate collections.