The quizzical paintings of David Leapman bounce out at the viewer through the use of fluorescent colors, but it is the line work hovering somewhere between figuration and the abstract that creates a magical scenario for considering his intentions. There is a calculated precision at work here, a careful regard. Quiet, but with a screaming intensity, the paintings remain poetic and lyrical, with the luminosity of Russian icons (both in their spirituality and in the desire for truth at their core).
The biomorphic worm-like lines, the broken squiggles, the little individualized blocks of bright color, sometimes seen in stripe form, all combine to lead a narrative that avoids direct confrontation but rather sneaks around in our peripheral vision, while we fall for the sleight of hand when the forms suggest we might have discovered a resolution of meaning.
The paintings have a graphic simplicity that misdirects the viewer, concealing their complexity. The colors are direct and bold, the line child-like in its imperfections. The forms cavort or maintain defensive positions, they lead us astray. They are tricksters.
They seem tied to the digital realm but are cognizant of their own physicality as an act of painting, the paint handling prominent when seen in real life while disappearing in reproduction very easily. The search for meaning continues, with answers intangible and elusive, the gap between one and the other more pertinent than ever. (MP)
Website: davidleapman.com
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