ORIENT SHIFT

Strandell observes storied culture through the mediation of hand made paintings and through the lens of technology with lenticular prints. In her second solo exhibition at the Joy Reed Belt Gallery, Orient Shift, Strandell uses source material from fine art auction sites and architectural scenes in exploring the re-assertion of meaning through pictorial reflection. From blue and white chinese dynastic vessels, Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture, and european chinoiserie she presents an array of oil paintings, archival prints, and a large scaled installation made from sumi ink with lenticular print media.

The orientation of these works shift in meaning from original object through the veneer of photography and internet imaging into the public arena of museum and auction house, and often to the market place. Strandell's painting Ultra Blue (peaches) was sourced from Christies Hong Kong auction site, documenting the Ming Dynasty vase which sold for over $71 million in 2006. Several oil paintings are derived from documentation of the 15th and 16th century Chinese Dynastic vessels, and from European Chinoiserie porcelains. Strandell's paintings of this sourced subject matter suspends the image in a dislocated space, reframing one's experience of the work. This dislocation flattens and distends the image to draw an aesthetic observation reconfigured somewhat as the vase becomes distorted in the market.