Scott Conary

February 3, 2011 - February 26, 2011
Opening Reception:
Gallery Hours:

Nisus Gallery and Carla Schultz Present

Scott Conary

February 3 – February 26, 2010
Gallery Hours: Friday – Saturdays from 12:00 – 5:00 pm and by appointment
Opening Reception: Thursday, February 3rd, 2011 from 6:00 – 9:00 pm
Nisus Gallery: 328 NW Broadway #117 (at Flanders), Portland, OR

Nisus Gallery is pleased to present Meat, new oil paintings by Scott Conary. In this solo show, Conary extends the tradition of still life painting beyond bowls of fruit and fading flowers to the fresh cut lambchop. Though small in scale (most are no larger than 9″ x 9″), the paintings lend an almost mythic aura to their subject, cuts of raw meat. As Conary states, “We are creatures of the landscape, of flesh, of our own personal and shared histories. But no matter that history, no matter how intricate the shapes and colors of the bone, muscle, fat and gristle, we are keenly aware that is part of a once living thing. It’s beautiful, desirable, and it’s unclean.” Through his loose, vigorous brushstrokes and stark compositions, Conary elicits that keen awareness with visceral, and somehow cheeky, precision. In the end, we are left with a sense of that conflict, of the tension between the weighty awareness of our own mortality and an odd playfulness; how silly to to see a lambchop there on the wall.

Scott Conary lives and works in Portland, and has for nearly 20 years pursued painting because, “It is intolerable not to.” He holds a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design.

Co-curated by Carla Schultz and Brad Nelson.

Meat will be on exhibit at Nisus Gallery, 328 NW Broadway #117 (at Flanders), from February 3 through the 26th,  2011. The opening reception is on First Thursday, February 3rd from 6-9 pm. Nisus Gallery is open Fridays & Saturdays 12-5 pm and by appointment.