Project Description
Ben Boothby
Artist Statement:
“My paintings are built entirely from memories of architectural moments. They are mnemonic structures; holding a multitude of overlapping memories from that space. Through this study of the architectural nature of my memories, I create visualizations of the way memories exist within our neuroanatomy. Memory is constructed with layers of spatial ambiguities, shifting degrees of focus, and scattered truths. Memory is in flux, when we try to pin it down to examine the details, it will not sit still. Gestural splatters and hard edged abstraction are combined to create a complex puzzle. The goal is to capture the pulsation of memory vibrating in self-contradictions.”
Ben Boothby is a native Mainer, but lived out of state for way too long, and is happy to call Portland home now. His paintings have been exhibited in NYC, nationally, and in Europe. Ben has been painting for 30 years, he received his BA in Studio Art from Wesleyan University in 1997. He earned his MFA from The Academy of Art University, San Francisco, in 2011. After graduating he taught abstract painting for 7 years at AAU. In the gap between degree programs he lived in DC, Iceland, and Oakland. The phase of living away from Maine concluded with 9 years in Bushwick, Brooklyn NY, and then the pandemic’s silver-lining was a move home. His studio is at Running With Scissors, in East Bayside.
Available Work
Ben Boothby ‘Fascia Catalyst’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 14″x26″x3″ $6,900
Ben Boothby ‘Fascia Catalyst (Detail)’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 14″x26″x3″ $6,900
Ben Boothby ‘Inlaid Cantilever #2’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 8″x11″x3″ $2,200
Ben Boothby ‘Inlaid Cantilever #2 (Detail)’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 8″x11″x3″ $2,200
Ben Boothby ‘Rotary Dial & French Toast’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 28″x44″x6” $15,500
Ben Boothby ‘Rotary Dial & French Toast (Detail)’ Oil on Inlaid Veneer Panel 28″x44″x6” $15,500
Education
2011 MFA Painting Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA
1997 BA Painting Wesleyan University Middletown, CT
Solo Exhibitions
2023 Parallax Attenuation, Merrymeeting Art Center, Bowdoinham, ME
2022 Retrograde Nostalgia Potential, Belleflower, Portland, ME
2015 Mnemonic Tectonics, Brooklyn Oenology, Brooklyn, NY
2015 Ephemeral Formation, Midtown Arts Common, New York, NY
2011 Mnemonic Reverie, 625 Sutter Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2006 Emerging Artist Series, Calloway Fine Arts, Georgetown, DC
2000 Recent Work, The Gallery At 357 Main, Rockland, ME
1998 Reflections, The Gallery At 357 Main, Rockland, ME
1997 Senior Thesis, Zilkha Gallery, Middletown, CT
Group Exhibitions
2023 Little Sparks, Lights Out, Norway ME
2023 Vacationland, 82 Paris, Portland ME
2022 6×6, Belleflower, Portland, ME
2015 25th Annual Holiday Show, Abend Gallery, Denver, CO
2015 Miniatures & More, Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque, NM
2015 Seeking Space, Be Electric Studios, Bushwick, NYC
2015 National Prize Show, Cambridge Art Association, Boston, MA
2015 NordArt, Kunstwerk Carlshütte, Büdelsdorf, Germany
2014 Reality Distort, Jeffery Leder Gallery, LIC, NYC
2014 Unstructured, Yes! Gallery, Greenpoint, NYC
2014 Seeking Space, The Active Space, Bushwick, NYC
2014 Without Boundary, School 33 Art Center, Baltimore, MD
2014 International Painting III, Jeffery Leder Gallery, LIC, NYC
2014 Painting Invitational, Clemens Gallery, Paducah School of Art and Design, Paducah KY
2013 Seeking Space, 3rd Ward, Bushwick, NYC
2012 Balance, Jeffery Leder Gallery, LIC, NYC
2012 Small Works NYC, Jeffery Leder Gallery, LIC, NYC
2012 Anywhere But Here, Gallery Bar, LES, NYC
2011 Spring Show, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
2010 Spring Show, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
2009 Spring Show, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
2006 Group Shows, The Gallery At 357 Main, Rockland, ME
2002 Group Shows, The Gallery At 357 Main, Rockland, ME
1999 Group Shows, McGrath Dunham Gallery, Castine, ME
1997 Summer in the City, DFN Gallery, New York, NY
Employment
2012-19 Instructor & Online Curriculum Development, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
Publications
2014 Dean Nimmer, Creating Abstract Art, North Light Books
2011 New American Paintings #98, North East Issue
2011 Creative Quarterly #25
