“COURSE OF EMPIRE” JOSIE MORWAY
“I always feel a strong pull towards commentary, but I want to acknowledge the impossibility of accurately declaring where we are in the arc of our civilization. We’re inevitably hurtling forward without the benefit of our larger, eventual context, and I’m trying to make work that sits with that ambiguity, brings in potent elements and topics without being pedantic.”
NOVEMBER 18-DECEMBER 23, 2023
On November 18th, the Corey Helford Gallery (CHG) in downtown Los Angeles will proudly present an exclusive collection of artworks by Josie Morway, a talented painter and designer based in Boston. The series, titled "Course of Empire," will be showcased in Gallery 2.
As a self-taught artist, Morway employs an exceptionally detailed style in her oil and ink paintings on canvas. Her unique approach blends the techniques of Dutch Masters, the aesthetics of religious icon paintings, and contemporary color and design elements. The result is a body of work often likened to "votive cave paintings from the distant future."
Morway's paintings exhibit a profound reverence for wildlife, pushing the boundaries of reality to create pieces that are simultaneously politically charged, ethereally poetic, and darkly comical. Her incredible art delves into the delicate balance and enduring strength of the natural world. In the face of human degradation, Morway envisions the sanctity of wildlife and wilderness, challenging preconceptions and societal projections that influence our interactions with the wild.
Morway shares, “Thomas Cole created a series of paintings called The Course of Empire almost 200 years ago, ostensibly as a cry for the protection of nature against industrial encroachments. Over time and through changing political climates, perceptions of the artist and his work have swung wildly; at times he’s been considered a reactionary elitist – an early NIMBY of sorts, defending the interests of his conservative patrons – and at other times he’s been hailed as an effective advocate, not just for nature, but for the people, for workers and immigrants such as himself, against the predations of industrial barons and the commercial elite.”
In echoing Cole’s title for her new series, the artist emphasizes the idea that the meaning of an artist’s work is not static, immediate, or within the artist’s control. Further, she asserts that the impact and import of a historical moment is often illegible to those living in that moment.
“The role of art is to offer a vision of the world as it could be, as well as to comment on the historical moment. But when the moment feels unnamable and analysis moot, its role is also to offer something ineffable but resonant, a sensory snapshot of how it feels to live in this time. The spin upon waking, the jungle inside, the source of that flash of light. The seeds in the bank, the cats in the streets. The bird in your heart and the wave at your door.”
In her latest creations, Morway seamlessly intertwines her trademark intense precision and lifelike realism with enigmatic textures and colors. This deliberate fusion serves to mirror the unsettling experiences of navigating the present in our shared human history. Morway skillfully blends the realms of the artificial and the untamed, featuring delicate portrayals of endangered species, carefully cultivated botanicals, urban landscapes, and atmospheres charged with intensity.
Within her art, one encounters a visual tapestry that captures the conflicting dichotomies of hope and apprehension, comfort and threat. Morway navigates the complex interplay between man-made and natural elements, creating a visual narrative that mirrors the disorienting effects of the ever-accumulating layers of history. Her work becomes a reflection of the dualities inherent in the contemporary human experience, prompting contemplation on the delicate balance between progress and peril, growth and vulnerability.