TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE ALL THIS IS HEADED. AARON COLLIER, 2012, OIL ON CANVAS.

Installed and on display at The Julian | 1581 Magazine St

We caught up with New Orleans artist Aaron Collier to discuss his abstract paintings and recent installation at The Julian.  Aaron’s work is layered in vibrant colors and "visual metaphors" to subtly express and evoke the composition of our days, relationships, and hearts.  Living, working, and teaching in New Orleans influences and affects his practice: “...the city is a conglomeration - a combination of histories, a beautiful and glorious assembly of people, backgrounds and culture.” Collier notes that the City is deep with visual gifts; the light – and how it affects landscape and architecture - invites attentive looking in the same way that he deliberates over his paintings, which stop short of things nameable, preferring to allude to various realities in life.  Aaron reminds us that art, history, and culture exceed strictly utilitarian or economic purposes and his work gives us the chance to reflect on big ideas – social, metaphysical, or simply the beauty in our neighborhood.