Art Exhibition | Jeff Newman | Solo Exhibition

“My lucid dreams play out in vivid colors, while color does not seem to play a role in my regular dreams. The lucid dreams combine strange interpretations of life events with notable emotions. Sometimes dramatic, other times more subtle but always in color.

I used a range of pigments with specific qualities from the CYMK color space as my palette for the Dream series of paintings. This color space helps achieve the other-worldly quality of the colors in my lucid dreams.

Combining this palette with surrealism, expressionism, and touches of cubism laid down with impressionist brush strokes displays my dreams for the viewer to feel." Jeff Newman 2023

Biography

Under the watchful eye of his grandmother – who herself was a painter and interior decorator – Jeff received his earliest art education. As he grew older, he continued to hone his skills by studying academic drawing and painting under renowned artists like Iliya Mirochnik and Slava Korolenkov. Later on, he also attended the Bridgeview School of Fine Arts in Queens, New York to further develop his craft.

Jeff’s artistic inclinations trace back to his childhood, where he found inspiration in his grandmother’s eclectic art library filled with works by Russian academic artists, impressionists, post-impressionists, expressionists, cubists, and abstractionists. As a young teenager, he visited his uncle Jim’s art gallery Dilexi during a family trip to San Francisco where he was introduced to the avant-garde sensibilities of contemporary art movements and artists. He was particularly taken with the people and what he saw and experienced in that gallery. From then on, Jeff spent his time doodling op-art and creating abstract and surreal dioramas from found objects and materials.

After retiring and living between New York City and California, Jeff dedicated himself to creating art and has since exhibited his works in various galleries and pop-up shows in some of the city’s most vibrant art districts, including SOHO, the East Village, the Bowery, and Chelsea. Inspired by a fusion of intellectual curiosity and emotional expression, Jeff has developed a unique artistic philosophy that combines both through his command of technical skills acquired through years of practice and study.

Jeff’s creative spirit and boundless curiosity drive him to constantly experiment with different techniques and styles in order to elicit intellectual and emotional responses from viewers. He draws inspiration from a diverse array of artistic movements, including cubism, surrealism, impressionism, Art Deco, Art Nouveau, and academic painting. While he enjoys creating abstract and modern works, Jeff also loves painting traditional impressionistic landscapes and drawing from life at the Art Students League in New York City.

https://www.otherminds.org/dilexi-the-gallery-and-beyond/