ROOTED will be hosting an exhibition by Clem Aurelius entitled “Darkness, Warmth, and Miscellaneous Items” through May/June 2021.
Artist Statement by Clem Aurelius:
I hope my art brings you a feeling of movement, peace, sadness, tranquility, or something that maybe I myself have never felt. But, I hope you receive a feeling of something, because we are dying from the moment we are born and while we are stuck between one period of nonexistence and another, it’s nice to feel alive once in a while.
Statement by Hank Fay, Curator:
We don’t often see outsider art in this area. The proliferation of drawing studios, adult-ed plein air safaris, art schools and the art programs of major universities tips the scale in favor of the cognoscenti. Many of us have been taught at some point how to paint. Not so for Clem Aurelius, self-taught artist. He has taught himself to depict vivid emotion with graphite and charcoal on plain white paper, where the places he paints seem happier than the people.
I sincerely hope that you can face the challenge of spending some time with these portraits, but be warned: the feelings are intense.
