SANDRA GOTTLIEB

A Comment on Abstract Expressionism

After producing 6 series of Seascapes photographed at the shore of the Atlantic Ocean in Rockaway Beach, Queens, NYC from 1996 to the present, I turned my camera to a lovely garden, also in Rockaway Beach during the winter of 2023.

My Seascapes series were photographed during all seasons and all times of day, and share a minimalist aesthetic, exploring the most basic elements of composition, contrasting light, texture and form.

The winter of 2023 was unusually mild which gave me the opportunity to visit the garden on overcast days when the light was soft and seemingly filtered…enabling the camera to find the lively colors and shapes within the dormant shrubs.

Using Jackson Pollack as my inspiration, I adjusted my camera settings, and along with the winter breezes, the objective was to produce images that incorporate energy and motion, as in Pollack’s Expressionistic “all-over” method of painting;  an art form that avoids any distinct points of emphasis and uses vivid colors to convey the artist’s subjective emotional response to the subject.

                                                                                                                                Sandra Gottlieb

I often painted fragments of things because it seemed to make my statement as well or better than the whole could.  – Georgia O’Keeffe  

During the winter of 2022, as the Covid pandemic was subsiding, I went to the Atlantic Ocean near my home in Rockaway Beach, NY, to photograph the beautiful jetties that were installed after Hurricane Sandy. They were created to avoid future damage from unusual weather events.

Using Georgia O’Keeffe as my aesthetic influence, I began photographing the configurations of the beautiful boulders, rather than the jetty in its entirety.

Keeping a keen eye on the atmosphere of the day, I brought my camera on days where the soft light lent colors and shadows onto the mighty rocks. This allowed the creation of abstract images using the unusual colors, texture, and shapes.

I have been photographing the Rockaway Beach seashore since 1996, and have produced 6 separate seascape series with different interpretations of the same location at the edge of the sea. 

My photographs have been shown in solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States. My most recent solo exhibitions were at the Chicago Museum of Art in 2020, and the Quincy Art Center in Illinois in 2022.

All my seascape series reflect the central theme of changing light and shifting tides, and invite viewers to connect with their own memories of the timeless quality of the experience at the edge of the sea.

Milton Avery, the American modern painter, is the artistic influence for many of my seascapes series, particularly his beach studies from the 1960’s.

I have been photographing the Rockaway Beach seashore in Queens, New York since 1996, and have produced 6 series with different interpretations of the exact location at the edge of the sea.

Rothko’s bands of color were the influence for my first series, “Seascapes 1996 thru 2006”. From there I went on to visit the shore at different times of the year, which brought different interpretations due to the changes in light and atmosphere. “Winter”, “Summer”, and “Autumn” each have their own qualities. “Waves in Black and White” was produced without color to explore the basic elements of composition; contrasting light, texture and form. However, all interpretations share a minimalist aesthetic.

“December Sunset 2020” was photographed during the Covid-19 pandemic when walking to the beach with my camera was a welcome relief from the news of the day. The sunset on December 18th was so captivating that I visited the shore in the late afternoon and stayed until nightfall.

The influence of the Avery beach studies brought me to see the seashore in a more painterly way, using shape and color to create interpretive images relating to the movement of the water along with the sand and sky.

All series reflect the central theme of changing light and shifting tides, and invite viewers to connect to their own memories of the timeless quality of the experience at the edge of the sea.