David B. Smith Gallery is proud to present Bay Area artist Michelle Blade in her first solo exhibition in the gallery’s project room. Featuring eight new ethereal ink paintings, Blade explores layers of interior and exterior landscapes and their correlating psychologies. Inspired by humanity and the
spectacular in nature, Blade takes cues from German Expressionism as well as the changing conditions of her own lived experience. The human element is a factor in all works, and where the figure is not present, traces of human activity are evident. The untamed nature of both individuals and the
landscape are emphasized, questioning the substance that separates and binds individuals and their surroundings.
Moving through the exhibition one can almost feel an ambient glow bouncing between works. Unique to Blade’s paintings is the flattening of light to create an otherworldly eternal time where night and day become indistinguishable,
at times the light source seemingly emanating from figures themselves. Setting is also blended, creating scenes in which internal and external elements are simultaneously divided yet linked by glass windowpanes. It is through her juxtaposition of shadowy, celestial figures, the full moon, and th quiet beauty of domestic still lifes, that Blade nimbly mines the subconscious, channeling the intangible.

Installation View