There is the old saying about art imitating life, but for Lon Michels and Todd Olson, art is life. It is their profession and surrounds them in their home and on travels. Their exhibition, “Husband & Husband,” at Portrait Society Gallery offers a glimpse into the career of two artists whose paintings overflow with colorful exuberance.
This is the first show where their work is presented side by side, and their shared penchant for pattern and sophisticated aesthetic is readily apparent. Michels’ painting Thai Garden shows a seated woman with a large bouquet of roses in various red hues held against her orange dress. Her blue hair tumbles to her shoulders and in the background are multicolored trees and a small sculpture. It is like looking at the world through a prismatic kaleidoscope, where ornate decorations cover every surface, from flesh to foliage. In this world, everything is transformed, buzzing and alive with possibilities for beauty and embellishment.
Olson’s Self-Portrait follows suit, but with additional touches of subtle expressionistic strokes and heavier lines of contour. Like Michels’ technique, the excitement of patterning and organic decoration draw the picture away from mere representation to something that describes a joyous sense of creation. That feeling is communicated through the syntax of painting.
To compare the similarities of style between Michels and Olson, see their companion pieces depicting Icarus and Daedalus. Working from live models, as is the case with their many portraits, the transformation is one that begins with reality and leaves in another world altogether. Daedalus, the consummate mythological craftsman, counsels Icarus about flying too close to the sun, represented as lovingly sage advice.
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When traveling, the couple opts for painting what they see rather than snapping easy photographs. In these works, echoes of Henri Matisse and Fauvist paintings come to mind. Their views of Ecuador and South America are bathed in light and vibrant tones that enthusiastically embrace new vistas. The way Olson and Michels see the world is a perspective not limited to their studio, but carried everywhere they go with brushes and artistic engagement in mind.
Through Nov. 10 at Portrait Society Gallery, 207 E. Buffalo St., fifth floor. Visit shepherdexpress.com for a special video interview with the artists.
