ARTIST STATEMENT
When asked about my work, my mantra used to be, “The subject matter of my work is not as important as how I paint it. Whether it be people, places, or things, the important thing is that my personality as an artist is visible through those themes. If I am not in there, I do not see the point.” While I feel this is still true, I no longer feel it is a complete “statement” from me as an artist. Over the years I have watched myself meticulously pick my subject matter based on two innate criteria: challenge and access. The subject must challenge me to express myself and grow as an artist. It must also afford access for my viewer; access to me as an artist and what I am trying to do. Even if they do not understand how I did it, the work must speak to them on some personal level and the subject matter often helps us find our common ground. We are all connected to people, places, and things. Sometimes those connections are based on memories, sometimes they are immediate. Either way, ethereal or evident, they are shared. My art is a dialogue between the viewer and myself about those shared connections—without the viewer, I am that proverbial tree in the forest.
While I somewhat accept being labeled a representational artist, I tend to shun the label of realistic artist. My work represents real life subject matter, but it is firmly based in abstraction and intuition. Rather than view my work as abstract representations of people, places, or things, I view it as an abstract representation of me—it represents my process of imagining. By focusing that abstraction and utilizing my intuition, I bring forth representational pieces. My work is born through solid draftsmanship plus a liberal application of paint via a brush or a knife or anything I can get my hands on, plus plenty of color experimentation and the carving of my medium. It is truly gratifying when a viewer, while being up close to my work, stares* in wonder at the surface then, while backing away, witnesses all that texture and color (that an art textbook tells them shouldn’t work) and abstraction somehow, mysteriously develop into a recognizable subject. That ‘somehow’ is me. So, that takes us back to what I wrote above, “If I am not in there, I do not see the point.”
*It is even better when they cock their head like a puppy.
When asked about my work, my mantra used to be, “The subject matter of my work is not as important as how I paint it. Whether it be people, places, or things, the important thing is that my personality as an artist is visible through those themes. If I am not in there, I do not see the point.” While I feel this is still true, I no longer feel it is a complete “statement” from me as an artist. Over the years I have watched myself meticulously pick my subject matter based on two innate criteria: challenge and access. The subject must challenge me to express myself and grow as an artist. It must also afford access for my viewer; access to me as an artist and what I am trying to do. Even if they do not understand how I did it, the work must speak to them on some personal level and the subject matter often helps us find our common ground. We are all connected to people, places, and things. Sometimes those connections are based on memories, sometimes they are immediate. Either way, ethereal or evident, they are shared. My art is a dialogue between the viewer and myself about those shared connections—without the viewer, I am that proverbial tree in the forest.
While I somewhat accept being labeled a representational artist, I tend to shun the label of realistic artist. My work represents real life subject matter, but it is firmly based in abstraction and intuition. Rather than view my work as abstract representations of people, places, or things, I view it as an abstract representation of me—it represents my process of imagining. By focusing that abstraction and utilizing my intuition, I bring forth representational pieces. My work is born through solid draftsmanship plus a liberal application of paint via a brush or a knife or anything I can get my hands on, plus plenty of color experimentation and the carving of my medium. It is truly gratifying when a viewer, while being up close to my work, stares* in wonder at the surface then, while backing away, witnesses all that texture and color (that an art textbook tells them shouldn’t work) and abstraction somehow, mysteriously develop into a recognizable subject. That ‘somehow’ is me. So, that takes us back to what I wrote above, “If I am not in there, I do not see the point.”
*It is even better when they cock their head like a puppy.
BIOGRAPHY
Raymond Logan received his BFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California in 1988. He has been exhibiting in Los Angeles for many years - with work featured at the Pasadena Museum of History, the Beverly Hills Art Show, and Laemmle Theaters, among many other locations. This is Logan’s second solo exhibition with George Billis Gallery, although his work has been a prominent fixture in the annual Cityscape Show. Logan lives and works in Glendale, California.
Raymond Logan received his BFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California in 1988. He has been exhibiting in Los Angeles for many years - with work featured at the Pasadena Museum of History, the Beverly Hills Art Show, and Laemmle Theaters, among many other locations. This is Logan’s second solo exhibition with George Billis Gallery, although his work has been a prominent fixture in the annual Cityscape Show. Logan lives and works in Glendale, California.
RESUME
EDUCATION
BFA, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California, 1988
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2022 Icons: Public and Personal, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2021 Local Icons, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2020 Objetos, Etcétera • Dia de los Colores / Mill Contemporary, Santa Fe
2020 Colorworks / Moorpark College, Moorpark
2020 Raymond in Ojai / Brittany Davis Gallery, Ojai
2019 Painting: Objects and Portraits / LA Artcore/Little Tokyo
2019 Everyday Icons, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Carving in Paint, Art in the Arthouse, Laemmle Theatres
2018 Art Up! Grand Opening, Beyond the Lines Gallery, DTLA
2017 Motion, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2017 In the Midst of Colour, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2016 People, Places, Things, LA Artcore, Brewery Annex
2012 As I See It, Sycamore Gallery
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2021 The Cityscape Show XI, George Billis Gallery/LA
2020 The Cityscape Show X: Concrete and Earth / George Billis Gallery/LA
2019 Gallery Artists / Mill Contemporary, Santa Fe
2019 The Cityscape Show IX / George Billis Gallery/LA
2019 Kitsch-In-Sync, Coastline College Art Gallery
2018 The Cityscapes Show VIII, George Billis Gallery/LA
2018 The Magnificent Seven, Coagula Curatorial
2018 LA Art Show, bG Gallery
2007-18 Beverly Hills Art Show
2017 The Cityscapes Show VII, George Billis Gallery/LA
2017 The Faces Within, South Bay Contemporary
2016 Open, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2016 The Cityscapes Show VI, George Billis Gallery/LA
2016 Art in the Arthouse, Laemmle Theatres
2015 The Cityscapes Show V, George Billis Gallery/LA
2014 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2014 The Man Show: A Celebration of Men in Art, Cope Studios
2014 Contemporary Masters, Artistic Eden IV, Pasadena Museum of History
2014 The Cityscapes Show IV, George Billis Gallery/LA
2013 The Cityscapes Show III, George Billis Gallery/LA
2012 Annual Small Works Show, Silvana Gallery
2012 Summer Show, Crow Valley Studios
2012 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2012 Contemporary Masters, Artistic Eden III, Pasadena Museum of History
2011 6” Squared Show, Randy Higbee Gallery
2010 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2007 Open Call LA, Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery
AWARDS
2007 to 2015 Beverly Hills Art Show, First Place / Painting Category - Twice, Second Place / Painting Category - Twice, Third Place / Painting Category
2011 First Place / 6” Squared Show / Randy Higbee Gallery
BFA, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California, 1988
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2022 Icons: Public and Personal, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2021 Local Icons, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2020 Objetos, Etcétera • Dia de los Colores / Mill Contemporary, Santa Fe
2020 Colorworks / Moorpark College, Moorpark
2020 Raymond in Ojai / Brittany Davis Gallery, Ojai
2019 Painting: Objects and Portraits / LA Artcore/Little Tokyo
2019 Everyday Icons, George Billis Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Carving in Paint, Art in the Arthouse, Laemmle Theatres
2018 Art Up! Grand Opening, Beyond the Lines Gallery, DTLA
2017 Motion, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2017 In the Midst of Colour, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2016 People, Places, Things, LA Artcore, Brewery Annex
2012 As I See It, Sycamore Gallery
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2021 The Cityscape Show XI, George Billis Gallery/LA
2020 The Cityscape Show X: Concrete and Earth / George Billis Gallery/LA
2019 Gallery Artists / Mill Contemporary, Santa Fe
2019 The Cityscape Show IX / George Billis Gallery/LA
2019 Kitsch-In-Sync, Coastline College Art Gallery
2018 The Cityscapes Show VIII, George Billis Gallery/LA
2018 The Magnificent Seven, Coagula Curatorial
2018 LA Art Show, bG Gallery
2007-18 Beverly Hills Art Show
2017 The Cityscapes Show VII, George Billis Gallery/LA
2017 The Faces Within, South Bay Contemporary
2016 Open, Beyond the Lines Gallery, Bergamot Station
2016 The Cityscapes Show VI, George Billis Gallery/LA
2016 Art in the Arthouse, Laemmle Theatres
2015 The Cityscapes Show V, George Billis Gallery/LA
2014 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2014 The Man Show: A Celebration of Men in Art, Cope Studios
2014 Contemporary Masters, Artistic Eden IV, Pasadena Museum of History
2014 The Cityscapes Show IV, George Billis Gallery/LA
2013 The Cityscapes Show III, George Billis Gallery/LA
2012 Annual Small Works Show, Silvana Gallery
2012 Summer Show, Crow Valley Studios
2012 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2012 Contemporary Masters, Artistic Eden III, Pasadena Museum of History
2011 6” Squared Show, Randy Higbee Gallery
2010 Annual Small Works Show, Segil Fine Art
2007 Open Call LA, Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery
AWARDS
2007 to 2015 Beverly Hills Art Show, First Place / Painting Category - Twice, Second Place / Painting Category - Twice, Third Place / Painting Category
2011 First Place / 6” Squared Show / Randy Higbee Gallery
