Press
Kenneth
Yee's abstract paintings are all about conflict and acquiescence.
In his newest works, Yee pairs opposing elements in layers to
arrive at a complicated visual balance. He achieves all of this
without using figurative images and relies instead on formal
arrangements of mark, color, and texture. Yee takes full advantage
of the wide range his medium affords him: thick, swirling lines
of paint compete with expressive doodles, halting scratches,
and messy scribbles. Often, the tighter, linear details are
sandwiched in between layers of opaque and transparent color.
In finishing one canvas, Yee's work goes through many evolutions
and layers as new marks cover up old ones.
Yee
is directly inspired by past jobs where he taught art to children
in kindergarten and pre-k classes, delighting in their ability
to make joyful, unselfconscious marks. The foundation of his
own painting vocabulary is based on his past interaction with
his students and his own canvasses are full of quick, intuitive
marks and cartoonish hints at imagery. Yee attended MICA's Post-Baccalaureate
program after completing a degree in graphic design and advertising
at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. He has never
taken an official painting class, although his love of art history
includes contemporary painters like Amy Sillman, Philip Guston,
Cy Twombly, and Mark Rothko.
The
subject matter of Yee's work lies in its physical surface. Experimentations
in mark-making and following a spontaneous process is an end
in itself for the artist, rather than illustrating or communicating
a personal idea or story. His emphasis on visual decisions generates
unusual balancing acts, allowing lyrical contour lines to compete
with swaths of muddy and intense color. On brighter canvasses
like Kid Ego and Winslow, Yee contrasts warm reds and pinks
with cool blues, greens, and grays to create natural color relationships,
reminiscent of a spring day. In the somber All of a Sudden I
Miss Everyone, his colors shift to rich grays, browns, and pale
minty greens, and it seems to capture the glow of fluorescent
lighting at night where "industrial" and pure colors
intermingle. Even when Yee shifts his decisions dramatically,
his works are all about creating equilibrium of opposing forces
and honestly capturing the energy of his struggle on canvas.
-- Cara Ober, Curator and Arts Writer, June 25, 2011
Press
/ Publications
Baltimore
Counts! A Children's Counting & Art Book, Holland Brown
Books
Playful Paintings; My Creation, by Cara Ober, Urbanite
Hidden City Quarterly, Volume 2, Issue 4, Summer 2010
Baltimore Weekly Highlights, City Paper, November 25, 2009
Art For Progress, Arts Education, NBC The Today Show