José Parlá: PHOSPHENE

E-Catalogue

Ben Brown Fine Arts is proud to present Phosphene, an exhibition of new works by New York-based Cuban artist José Parlá at the flagship London gallery from 11 October to 16 November 2023, coinciding with Frieze London. This will be the artist's second solo exhibition in the Mayfair space, following his highly acclaimed Echo of Impressions show in 2018. Phosphene forms the second part of a comprehensive exhibition that was preceded by earlier paintings from this series at our Hong Kong gallery in March 2023.

The significance of these works lies, in part, from their inspiration following the artist's near-death experience with Covid (2021) and unveils an exhilarating and poignant exhibition drawing on recurring themes in his practice, including urban space, human markings, memory and energy.

Parlá's Phosphene series began while the artist spent time in his hometown of Miami, Florida, during what was meant to be a brief period of respite between his schedule of exhibitions around the world. There, surrounded by nature and brilliant sunlight, the artist began to experiment with painting outdoors - a stark contrast to his industrial studio in Brooklyn - using the sun to elucidate the abstract visual language in his mind. This exhibition takes its title from the visual phenomenon that gives the impression of seeing light with eyes closed. Appearing as flashes of colourful light, such as dots, swirls or shapes that wander slowly across a person's vision, the term 'phosphene' is derived from Greek phōs 'light' + phainein 'to show'.

For Parlá's new body of work, the meditative sensation of letting the sun briefly penetrate his retina, producing an effect of hues, images and shapes appearing behind closed lids, was immediately translated to his paintings, creating mysterious, evocative landscapes of light and shadow. His intricately layered, seemingly asemic calligraphy, suggestive of optic nerves or arterial threads, is charged with obscured words and phrases, carriers of meaning in each work. This exhibition further explores his gestural, instinctual practice of calligraphy as a meditative, rhythmic process to his subconscious and interiority, the layers of inscrutable writing imbuing his paintings with both light and depth. The movement in the work is also reflective of the unique symbiosis Parlá experiences between sound and colour, listening to music as he paints to create a unique visual language, a form of synesthesia.

"My intention in this work is to invite a meditation and a question - what do we see and what do we imagine when we close our eyes? What does it transcend us to? Where does it take us to?" - José Parlá