Collection: Elyce Abrams

Bio

Elyce Abrams is an abstract painter based in Philadelphia. Her work, in the last few years, has explored the relationship between happiness and deep concern; fear and acceptance; compliance and resistance; isolation and connection. Abrams received her MFA in 2004 from the University of the Arts and her BA/BFA from Tufts University/School of the Museum of Fine Arts. Recent work has been included in many solo and group shows. A selection of which are: Connection-Isolation, Blank Space Gallery, NYC; Hybrid, Bertrand Productions, Philadelphia, PA; We're All Here, Philadelphia International Airport; Something New Every Day, NoBA Projectspace, Bala Cynwyd, PA;  Les Chic, James Oliver Gallery, Philadelphia, PA: Spectral Materiality, Blank Space Gallery, NYC; Encore, NoBA Projectspace, Bala Cynwyd, PA; Lost in the Funhouse, Spring Break Art Fair, New York. Her work is included in public and private collections throughout the US and abroad, including Fox School of Business, Temple University; Royal Caribbean Cruise Line; Charles Library, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA; Capital One, Wilmington, DE; Lankenau Medical Center, Wynnewood, PA. 

Statement

Flexibility, strength and durability have profoundly inspired my work in the last few years. I am deeply affected by the adjustments we are all making to a constantly changing reality and the resilience I see everyday. Through my paintings, I interpret the relationship between happiness and deep concern; hope and sorrow; fear and acceptance; compliance and resistance; isolation and connection. By analyzing these competing forces in my work, I am able to further explore and understand their value.

My most recent series of works on paper with acrylic paint markers, started when I was mourning the loss of my mom. I needed to work in a way that was focused and calming. Painting has always been a stabilizing force in my life, and working in this ordered way was what got me through the first hard weeks. Sitting at my desk, drawing line after line, allowed me the space to process my loss. At times, I was completely immersed in the work and the decisions of how I wanted it to develop and at other times the repetition of the lines became automatic, allowing my mind to wander and grieve. I found comfort in this and I fell in love with the way the paint from the markers flow into the paper, their precision, and the ability, because of their opacity, to change colors and create layers. As the work has developed, and time has passed, my love of color, pattern, structure and repetition remains central to these pieces. They feel filled with light and joy.