Pamela Jorden: In the Studio

To hear Pamela Jorden discuss her studio practice and new works, click here.

Pamela Jorden's recent body of work--the "Reflector” group--alludes to the interaction between two parts of the diptych, or two bodies. A theme that has been recurrent in Jorden’s practice for the past decade, that of a cut or a rupture in her compositions, is pushed further in this body by the physical divide between halves. The works function as diptychs, but break from the symmetry of the circle or rectangle, allowing for their shapes to become more complex. The scale and form of the paintings allude to the artist’s full arm span and reach, creating boundaries to their dynamic thrust. Jorden was inspired by contact improvisation in dance, constructing reactive moments in her work where the canvas and paint touch. 

Applying the paint in directed, pushed and dragged flows creates markers of Jorden’s active and physical manipulation of materials. The linen has been pulled, stretched, and incised to wrap around the convex and concave curves of their stretchers giving solidity to the atmospheric qualities of the painted surface. Jorden often refers to landscape and qualities of light in her work, associating the exposed areas of linen with the color and texture of the sandy soil of Southern California, where she lives. This new work introduces implications of the body and movement.

Pamela Jorden (b. 1969, Knoxville, TN) received a BFA from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN) in 1992 and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts (Valencia, CA) in 1996. Jorden is currently the subject of solo-exhibition, "Reflector," at Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery (New York, NY). Her work was the subject of the recent two person exhibition, "Katy Cowan and Pamela Jorden: The Day in the Night" at Philip Martin Gallery (Los Angeles, CA). Jorden's work has been the subject of solo and group exhibitions at Romer Young Gallery (San Francisco, CA), Pizzuti Collection (Columbus, OH), Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery (New York, NY), and Mason Gross Art Gallery at Rutgers University (New Brunswick, NJ). Her work has been featured in numerous publications such as "Artforum," "Los Angeles Times," "The New York Times," and "Art in America." Jorden lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.

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