To some, repetition can be comforting, a way to see the world through a more focused lens, an instrument of introspection. Patterns reveal themselves in our everyday life, a routine that follows the prescribed motions and rarely strays, a carousel that has no end. In art, patterns can be used to examine the deeper psychological effects that structure and form hold in our collective psyche. Enter Brooklyn based artist Bridget Mullen.
Her work has been described as intuitive and rhythmic, delving into a milieu of abstract shapes while touching on areas of figuration and representational form. Tonally, her paintings shift between loud and energetic colors to softer more melancholic tones, presenting a spectral tension between these moods. Working slowly and instinctively, Mullen layers form upon form, adding and polishing until a satisfactory painting is revealed. Psychologically gripping, Mullen's work leads a viewer on a sinuous path through her own process, a world ripe with textural animation, playful construction and most important, perhaps repetition.
We sat down with her this summer to discuss her work, her practice (in and out of the studio) and what it means to reach the end of things, both in life and in art. Take a look below.
Read the full interview here.