(Paintings above: acrylics on canvas by David Wachs)

 David Wachs ~ Central Oregon Winter Drama

Art in the Atrium, Franklin Crossing, invites the public to First Friday, January 5, 5-8pm, featuring paintings by David Wachs, Central Oregon Winter Drama, through January 28. The artists will attend the January 5 opening.

David Wachs set a personal residency record living in the Tumalo and Bend area since 1992. Surrounded by spectacular beauty and painting these dramatic natural scenes bound him to a ranch in Central Oregon.

Then selling his ranch, the artist spent the past 24 months traveling the West, exploring from Taos, New Mexico to Big Sky, Montana and the Leavenworth, Washington environs. His rural, alpine travels yielded great reference for new artwork yet he choose to return to Bend as “it is truly the best place I’ve found.”

Wachs’ exhibit reflects his affection for Central Oregon, his chosen home base. The artist’s images including The Dirty Side of Jefferson and Looking East Toward the Prow reveal his “solemn commitment to the landscape that inspires me to search out these unique organic forms that become my compositions. I distill and translate random and chaotic patters found in the wild into images that communicate my passion for the land I explore.”

The artist employs a “loose, gestural approach to surface quality and texture, building my paintings from a peripheral perspective not unlike what you might see out of the corner of your eye while driving.” His paintings invite both close observation, noting harsh edges, separation of colors and brush strokes, or distant contemplation of sweeping, vast areas such as those of the Cascade Range.

Involved in art from an early age and citing influences ranging from Mossimo Vignelli and Wayne Thiebaud to Gerhard Richter, Wachs studied at Portland’s Museum Art School, Indiana State University and finished at Montana State University, Bozman. His work appears in private and public collections including Citi Bank, Bank of the Cascades, U.S. Bank (Portland), MODA (Bend), the Bend Bulletin and Oregon Public Broadcasting.

During First Friday, Noi Thai serves wine and appetizers and The Tommy Leroy Jazz Quartet entertains. Billye Turner, art consultant, curates the Franklin Crossing displays with info at billyeturner@bendnet.com, 503-780-2828.