CLINTON, NY — “How can you be an artist and not reflect the times?” mused Nina Simone, the famous singer, composer and activist. The paintings created by artist Eric Alugas manifest her statement in subtle ways.
The Kirkland Art Center in Clinton, NY is honored to present the work of well-known artist Eric Alugas and, on the last day of the exhibition, to offer a talk by the artist on Saturday June 13 at 4:00 p.m. Entry is free and the public is welcome.
Alugas’s work is complex and layered, yet simultaneously direct and succinct. The paintings are both dreamlike and insightful, drawing from African-American and European cultural histories while integrating concepts from mythology and philosophy. Loose, scumbled paint on large-scale, free-hanging canvases allude to intellectual concepts (such as racism, literature, music), Alugas’s lived experience as a Black man in America, and the ways in which the very materials and methods of painting represent the subject matter.
Born and raised in New Orleans, Eric Alugas studied painting at the University of New Orleans, and was awarded a scholarship to l’Ecole Nationale Superieur des Beaux Arts in France. Alugas resided in Paris for many years, exhibiting throughout Europe, before returning to the United States. He subsequently received grants to study with various artists in Europe and at the Paris American Academy and the Foundation Taylor in Paris.
Alugas currently lives and works in New York City. He is represented by galleries in both New York and New Orleans. His work is featured in prominent private and public collections.
