Press Release - Pathways by Olivia Nevins-Carbins
Olivia Nevins-Carbins
”Octavia”
Oil paint on canvas
30 x 24 inches
2021
Pathways
A solo exhibition by
Olivia Nevins-Carbins
Opening Reception
Saturday, May 8th
12-6 pm by appointment only
Showing Through June 4th, 2021
pt. 2 Gallery is pleased to announce Pathways, a solo exhibition of new paintings by the San Francisco based artist Olivia Nevins-Carbins. Inspired by the arte nouveau forms that grace the gates of San Francisco’s Victorian houses, Nevins-Carbins pays homage to the history and architectural landscape of native city, telling stories of those who inhabit such houses along the way. Pathways is the artist’s first solo exhibition with the gallery.
In many of Nevins-Carbins paintings, a gridlike structure organizes the picture plane, neatly laying out space for images of flowers and other native plants, narrative elements, or swatches of vivid color. The devil’s trumpet, california poppy and naturnium leaves, amongst others, fill the spaces in these grids, themselves evocative of the countless gates at San Francisco homes. With the forms inspired by organic forms, symmetrical curves and alternative lines and curves, these gates draw a line between the natural world and the societal.
Olivia Nevins-Carbins
”She Is Coming”
Oil stick and acrylic on paper
29 x 23 inches
Framed in museum glass
2021
The new paintings presented in Pathways indicate a new journey for Nevins-Carbins as she incorporates figurative elements in a number of her paintings. Whether a particular vignette shows a woman's legs, or perhaps her face, these indications of human help ground Nevins-Carbins in reality. They also serve to preserve history. Behind each gate is an old house, maybe in the Victorian or Edwardian style. The gate, like the Manet’s window shades before them, offer a way in which to see the world in that these homes are the standing relics that act as time capsules, faint reminders of the rich history that unfolded within them. By repurposing these gates, Nevin-Carbins alludes to the idea that we can only imagine the stories that have happened within.
Nevins-Carbins mark-making favors emotive gestures over dedication to verisimilitude. Working in oil, pastel and oil stick on canvas, the butterflies, flowers, architectural facades and figures she paints demonstrate the moments of inspiration around the pathways she follows within her life and in San Francisco. Born and raised in a city with less and less locals, a year of staying put has taught the artist to look for the beauty in moments that connect the past and present, hopefully alluding to a rich future. Resplendent with shades of green and butterflies scattered across her canvases, the optimism of spring permeates Nevins-Carbins exhibition.