Spencer Lewis

Spencer Lewis primarily works with paint on jute, yet has previously worked with bronze, cardboard and assemblage to work through his sculptural ideas. What remains a constant is his interest in space and composition. His methodology undoubtedly responds to the legacy of Abstract Expressionism. Working on large scale pieces of jute, the artist applies swathes of spray paint and then intuitively builds up concrete layers of gestural markings in oils, acrylics, inks and enamel. Unlike normal canvas, the pigment doesn’t bleed easily into the fibres of the jute, it resists seeping or softening the applied materials. This quality produces highly defined compositions, where each gesture has been preserved. A trademark of Lewis’s paintings is the loose circumference of negative space found in most of his works. The hive of energy takes place at the centre of each piece, with the peripheries offering space to digest the visceral emotiveness at each core. Although Lewis’s works sit outside the realm of figuration, their emotive sensibility is clear. Responding to music history, family dynamics and romantic relationships, the point of departure for each painting is always incredibly personal, it’s up to the viewer to decipher their own response.