NEW YORK, NY.- Canadian artist Joseph Adolphe returns to BDG with a highly anticipated solo exhibition of new work. Adolphe is a versatile contemporary painter who succeeds in portraying subjects ranging from sensual nudes and large, blooming buds to charging bulls and regal horses. Adolphe’s second solo exhibition at BDG introduces an all new series of oil on canvas pieces, including new florals, and powerful animals as well as new paintings wherein he ambitiously attempts to describe the most profound moments in his life in works he refers to as ‘locutions’. Several of the works continue his recent exploration into the possibilities created through the use of gold leaf. With the addition of this bold effect, he creates stunning visual masterpieces that are strong in composition and subject while remaining aesthetically enticing.

Adolphe’s works have an Old Master/Expressionist quality with rich, visible brushstrokes and a clear understanding of motion; however, he endows his work with an undeniable modernity and relevancy to today’s rapidly changing world. His works are fraught not only with frenetic movement and energy but with a palpable sense of emotion and drama. He combines strong, defined forms bursting with life with loosely structured backgrounds that often border on abstraction. His large flowers, ripe fruits and wild animals are often the only clear images amongst a frenzied world of color and confusion. Whether he depicts a raging bull or a sensitive nude, there is a sense of vulnerability and universal anxiety about the world in his works. His works frequently juxtapose strength and uncertainty thus giving his subjects a feeling of resilience and perseverance in the face of the unknown. On his work, the artist states:

All of my paintings, whatever the subject matter, have at their core the same content. I’m always trying to capture in paint energy, enthusiasm and an ardent sense of hope. These characteristics embody the essence of those people who I have come to admire and try to emulate.

Born in 1968 in Alberta, Canada, Adolphe moved to New York City in 1992 to attend the School of Visual Arts from which he received his MFA in 1994. His paintings have been featured in over forty exhibitions since 1998 throughout the United States and internationally. He lives with his wife and children in New Haven, Connecticut and is a professor in the Department of Art & Design at St. John’s University in New York City.