Arrebol Paula Siebra

Paula Siebra’s debut exhibition at Mendes Wood DM in New York is marked by a quiet and studious consideration for the often-discarded events of everyday. Her simple and still compositions enshrine or crystalize small moments of being; coffee and bread, the horizon of a table, a vase of paper-cut flowers, are portrayed with a sense of poise and noiseless importance. Each painting in turn seems to impart a stillness to the viewer, as if to say, “hold” and then, “let go.”

The exhibition’s Portuguese title Arrebol, denotes the reddening sky of dusk or dawn. Every scene depicted in the exhibition is cast over with a dusty, auburn light. Is it the half-light between the hours of the day or the color of memory? We do not know exactly. From a technical viewpoint the meticulous subtly of the contrasts that emerge from these warm tones is constructed from various layers of multi-colored under paintings. The visual effect of superposing neutral tones over a darker background, known as “successive contrast,” allows for the vibrancy of the delicate light in her canvases.

In Arrebol, the presence of Northeastern Brazilian culture is deeply felt. Folk art and the synthetic forms of clay objects, crochet, and geometric facades are present throughout. Through her works we are introduced to dreamlike villages, domestic objects, and intimate but anonymous faces. Siebra’s paintings intone a more universal hymn, that of the successive moments that ring together to make the music of everyday of life.