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SACRED SPACE dawn dusk

STEP INTO THE SILENT TRANSCENDENT UNKNOWN

color meditations in oil

"In my work, I attempt to unite the viewer with the power of the sublime found in our visual environment. Whether a color-saturated twilight sky, the expression of a human face, or the sculptural quality of a piece of fruit, the inspiration for my paintings derives primarily from nature and emerges intuitively, oblivious to current intellectual artistic convention. The work is meant to evoke elemental emotions and an aesthetic arrest universal to the human spirit.

The SACRED SPACE dawn dusk series began unexpectedly during personal meditative time at sunrise one January morning in 2010 on a pier near my home in Key West. That dawn evolved into a commitment to experience the energy and color of morning and evening twilight on a daily basis for a full year. The result was spiritual rejuvenation and transformation both personally and for my art. Over the course of the year, the paintings progressively grew in size and in their level of peace and unity. As I reconnected with the cycles and colors of nature, the resulting canvases became monumentally larger and compositionally quieter. The pieces are intentionally sized to represent oversized open doors for the observer to step into. The paintings represent an attempt to channel and reduce to the essence my experience during those mornings and evenings spent alone with the enveloping beauty and boundless energy of the sky. As John Muir so eloquently stated, 'Going out, I found, was really going in'.

Toward the end of my incredible year, I was fortunate to witness and photograph two elusive green flashes within a one-month period. A green flash is a one-to-two-second refraction of light phenomenon that rarely appears, just as the sun sinks below the horizon. I have recently commemorated my memories of those two dynamic evenings with large 5 x 7 feet paintings. (photos of which can be seen below) The green flash paintings and some photographs are on exhibit this 2011-2012 season in the upstairs main office space at The Studios of Key West."

- Keith Bland

ART THAT UNITES THE HUMAN SPIRIT TO THE SUBLIME IN OUR VISUAL UNIVERSE ... NATURALLY

NOVEMBER 23 DUSK, GREEN FLASH; oil on canvas; 60 x 84 inches

OCTOBER 27 DUSK, GREEN FLASH; oil on canvas; 60 x 84 inches

Please click on the SACRED SPACE dawn dusk link at the top of this homepage for ordering and pricing information for the paintings, the photographs, and the newly released coffee table book.

The SACRED SPACE dawn dusk paintings in oil completed to date evolved toward clarity in large format - 84 inches (7 feet) by 60 inches (5 feet), designed so the viewer can "step into" the brilliant color of dawn and dusk. The photographs attempt to document the short-lived and unique twilight moments and begin to frame elements of final painting compositions. In addition, a beautiful hardbound coffee table book titled SACRED SPACE dawn dusk Postcards from the Key West Sky was released and is presented on the SACRED SPACE link at the top of this homepage in a format that allows the viewer to view the entire book. The book is available for purchase, signed or unsigned. The 136-page book features 113 copyrighted photographs (including two green flashes), each also for sale on the website by title and page number in the book. The photos are available framed or unframed, signed or unsigned, in varying sizes. Please follow the instructions on the site using Paypal or email keith@keithbland.com to order books, photos, and/or paintings.

Three of the six photographs (above) and the two oil paintings (below) that hang at the beautiful new Methodist Hospice Residence in Memphis, Tennessee

The SACRED SPACE work has recently been featured in three solo exhibitions. The first was held at The Studios of Key West (TSKW.org), March 3 - 15, 2011. The second was hosted by the Memphis Botanic Garden, April 1 - 30, 2011. The photographic images were presented in two formats: matted and framed, and in a stunning slideshow visual presentation of 81 images chronologically representing the annual cycle, January through December. The paintings were featured in the main gallery halls, and the photographs in secondary galleries. The exhibition continued this past summer in Memphis at the galleries of Askew, Hargraves, Harcourt & Associates (A2H). In addition, two of the large paintings and six framed photos have been featured at summer gala openings of Phase 1 of the beautiful new Methodist Hospice Residence facility in Memphis. The pieces were chosen and purchased as part of the highly successful Methodist Le Bonheur Hospital's new focus on fine art in hospitals.

In January, 2012, the Florida Keys Council of the Arts selected three of the large paintings to hang in a very prominent location at the Key West International Airport (see below).

The 7 feet x 5 feet paintings in oil will hang in the Key West Airport in 2012.

SACRED SPACE dawn dusk; commissioned triptych in the lobby of

Commercial Advisors, Memphis, Tennessee

"SILENCE IS SO ACCURATE." Mark Rothko