Artist Statement

My paintings and drawings use images of natural and astronomical phenomena to connect the fields of science and art. I am fascinated by the attempt to observe something that remains out of reach and how this pursuit reflects the individual observer. 

Forms, patterns, and colors found in photographs from science books and the Internet are compositional starting points. My current work explores the variety and subtle differences between the patterned surfaces of seashells. Other recent bodies of work have looked at images of Saturn's rings and star trails constructed by time-lapse exposures, spectroscopes, and color-enhanced photography. 

The color test swatches left on the sides of the drawings and the deliberate mark-making show the process of the work's making. Carefully considering each color and the deliberate approach to mark-making reveal the discoveries made while making a painting.

My work is rooted in the history and forms of early modernism, particularly the period when abstraction was taking shape. Growing up in rural Maine, near the Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, instilled a deep respect for craft and a sense of discovery and wonder in the natural world. These influences are interwoven into my art, which aspires to capture fleeting moments of awe through a homemade process. 

Bio

Carrie Gundersdorf is an artist and educator who lives and works in Brooklyn, NY, and Portland, ME. She has had solo exhibitions at La Loma Projects, Los Angeles; Korn Gallery, Drew University, Madison, NJ, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL, and Shane Campbell Gallery, Chicago, IL. Her work has been included in group exhibitions at 106 Green, New York, NY, Mills College Art Museum, Oakland, CA, La Box, Bourges, France, Gallery 400, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL, Marc Foxx Gallery, Los Angeles, CA and Loyola Museum of Art, Chicago, IL. Gundersdorf’s work has been reviewed in Art Review, Artforum.com, Artnet, Art on Paper, Chicago Tribune, and Time Out Chicago. She was awarded the Artadia Award, in Chicago, IL, and the Bingham Fellowship to attend the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. Gundersdorf received her B.A. from Connecticut College and her M.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Contact: carriegund@gmail.com