Abstract artist appreciates ‘things that are disrupting your vision or disrupting your understanding or assumptions’
By David Walega
New Bedford Light – November 30, 2023
Isabel Riley’s large abstract paintings, in various stages of completion, fill her Hatch Street Studio space with layers of bright colors, applied plaster and line work.
“I’m interested in excavation and the passage of time in an artwork as well as in our life,” she said. “I like things that are disrupting your vision or disrupting your understanding or assumptions.”
Riley studied representational painting before evolving into an abstract artist. She also has a deep understanding of the methods used to create depth in her works.
Her painting surface is manipulated by the application of a sander, revealing glimpses of the layering process underneath.
“I use an orbital sander as my secret weapon to grind down the surfaces. Then I can put another one on,” she said. “The depth, it goes back to really Renaissance painting, like how there was always this deep background of a landscape in the distance.”
The physicality of her process is integral to her art.
“It’s like a workout, sort of shedding anxiety, trying to work through something with my hands instead of my mind,” she said.
Riley also works as a scenic artist, painting sets for film and television. It’s a profession that demands constant mental and physical activity.
”I do align myself with laborers and working class,” she said. “And, so it feels comfortable to be in this space. That was once that.”
Her work ethic fuels a mutual admiration for the history of laborers that once worked in the mills like Hatch Street.
“I’m really interested in the history of the textile industry. I’m fascinated by it. I mean, it was not a glamorous or romanticized lifestyle at all, but being somebody [who] works with my hands, it’s so inspiring,” she said.
Fishing nets, large-scale machinery and the architecture of the area surround her New Bedford studio. A 180-degree view of the Acushnet River fills the floor to ceiling windows to the east. One can see the roofs of numerous historic factory buildings beyond.
“Being in this building inspires my work directly from my view,” Riley said. “The colors change with these oranges and the blue of the river and the factories and the arches. So that stuff just seeps in more than you know. It’s a huge inspiration.”
The environment of the coastal life, as well as the local community, permeates her creations.
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