|
FRANCIS DiFRONZO
Proof of Life (Part 5) June 10 - July 8, 2023 Opening Reception: Saturday June 10, 4-7pm |
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Billis Williams Gallery is pleased to present Proof of Life (Part 5), the gallery’s fourth solo exhibition of paintings by Southern California painter Francis DiFronzo. Proof of Life (Part 5) is the 5th installment in DiFronzo’s serial exhibition contemplating what the future of humanity looks like. The exhibition opens with an artist reception on June 10th and continues through July 8th.
DiFronzo’s ethereal paintings depict imagined landscapes from a world of his own creation. His hauntingly beautiful paintings alternate between reality and the surreal as they present desolate and mysterious places reminiscent of the iconic American West.
The paintings are highly detailed and wander from familiar and mundane to the surreal. Fundamentally a storyteller, DiFronzo transports the viewer into a world of his own creation and invites them to live there. As they move from painting to painting in the series, the viewer vicariously experiences the depth and breadth of this world and the stories that DiFronzo has imagined.
There is an elegance and refinement to the mark-making. Often spare in their compositions, the paintings rarely contain more than a few subjects: the sky, the earth, creosote or arrowweed bushes, and some evidence of past or present human existence in the form of an abandoned car, fence post, road, or rail car. DiFronzo is illustrating the story, or perhaps premonition, of what might become of humanity, and what we unintentionally would leave behind.
Francis DiFronzo was born in 1969 in San Pedro, California. He received his BFA from California State University at Fullerton in 1994 and his MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1996. DiFronzo's acclaimed works have been exhibited throughout the United States and are included in numerous private collections. His work has been published in American Art Collector, Western Art & Architecture, and Fine Art Connoisseur, among others. He has been awarded several prestigious grants including the Stobbart Foundation Fellowship in the Arts in 1998 and the Pew Fellowship in the Arts in 2004. He lives and works in Southern California.
ARTIST STATEMENT 2023
When I was young, I realized that art had the power to transport me to different places and eras. Whenever I looked at paintings by Edward Hopper or Andrew Wyeth, I felt as though I was instantly transported to the worlds they depicted. I wanted my own artwork to possess that same power.
As the years passed, I came to the realization that I am also fundamentally a storyteller. Not only do I want to transport my audience into a world of my own creation, but I want them to live there, and as they move, from painting to painting, they move vicariously through the worlds and stories I've drawn out from my imagination.
The images I create are entirely imagined scenes and alternate between reality and the surreal as they present desolate and mysterious places reminiscent of the iconic American West.
I’m drawn to deserted places and bare compositions. Rarely are there more than a few subjects in my paintings; the sky, the earth, Creasote or Arrowweed bushes, and some evidence of past or present human existence. Perhaps an abandoned car, fence post, road, or rail car.
I use these subjects as characters in a play. I give my audience just enough information where they can conjure up a story, but never enough to feel entirely grounded or sure of what the story is or where it is going.
For all press inquiries, please contact 310.838.3685 or [email protected]
For all other inquiries, please contact Tressa Williams at [email protected]
DiFronzo’s ethereal paintings depict imagined landscapes from a world of his own creation. His hauntingly beautiful paintings alternate between reality and the surreal as they present desolate and mysterious places reminiscent of the iconic American West.
The paintings are highly detailed and wander from familiar and mundane to the surreal. Fundamentally a storyteller, DiFronzo transports the viewer into a world of his own creation and invites them to live there. As they move from painting to painting in the series, the viewer vicariously experiences the depth and breadth of this world and the stories that DiFronzo has imagined.
There is an elegance and refinement to the mark-making. Often spare in their compositions, the paintings rarely contain more than a few subjects: the sky, the earth, creosote or arrowweed bushes, and some evidence of past or present human existence in the form of an abandoned car, fence post, road, or rail car. DiFronzo is illustrating the story, or perhaps premonition, of what might become of humanity, and what we unintentionally would leave behind.
Francis DiFronzo was born in 1969 in San Pedro, California. He received his BFA from California State University at Fullerton in 1994 and his MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1996. DiFronzo's acclaimed works have been exhibited throughout the United States and are included in numerous private collections. His work has been published in American Art Collector, Western Art & Architecture, and Fine Art Connoisseur, among others. He has been awarded several prestigious grants including the Stobbart Foundation Fellowship in the Arts in 1998 and the Pew Fellowship in the Arts in 2004. He lives and works in Southern California.
ARTIST STATEMENT 2023
When I was young, I realized that art had the power to transport me to different places and eras. Whenever I looked at paintings by Edward Hopper or Andrew Wyeth, I felt as though I was instantly transported to the worlds they depicted. I wanted my own artwork to possess that same power.
As the years passed, I came to the realization that I am also fundamentally a storyteller. Not only do I want to transport my audience into a world of my own creation, but I want them to live there, and as they move, from painting to painting, they move vicariously through the worlds and stories I've drawn out from my imagination.
The images I create are entirely imagined scenes and alternate between reality and the surreal as they present desolate and mysterious places reminiscent of the iconic American West.
I’m drawn to deserted places and bare compositions. Rarely are there more than a few subjects in my paintings; the sky, the earth, Creasote or Arrowweed bushes, and some evidence of past or present human existence. Perhaps an abandoned car, fence post, road, or rail car.
I use these subjects as characters in a play. I give my audience just enough information where they can conjure up a story, but never enough to feel entirely grounded or sure of what the story is or where it is going.
For all press inquiries, please contact 310.838.3685 or [email protected]
For all other inquiries, please contact Tressa Williams at [email protected]
VIEW EXHIBITION
Billis Williams Gallery opened as George Billis Gallery Los Angeles in 2004. Tressa Williams joined as director in 2009 and became partner in 2021. Billis Williams Gallery builds on the Billis legacy and shows emerging to mid-career artists with a special focus on Southern California painters. The gallery is dedicated to exhibiting exceptional work in richly varied visual vocabularies ranging from abstraction to photorealism.
Billis Williams Gallery
2716 S. La Cienega Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90034
[email protected]
www.BillisWilliams.com
Billis Williams Gallery
2716 S. La Cienega Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90034
[email protected]
www.BillisWilliams.com