Five abstract photographs by artist Steven Silverstein are being shown in the Split House Project: Contemporary Showcase by Los Angeles architectural firm, Michael Kovac & Associates, in conjunction with the book release of “Sense of Place: Elements of California Modernism” by Michael Webb (Pepperdine University Press). The opening night exhibit was October 8 and runs until February 1, 2016.
The Split House Project, Santa Monica, California, by Michael Kovac & Associates, with art by contemporary artist Steven Silverstein.
Silverstein's photographic works on paper and canvas were selected for their response to the spirit of the architecture. The architect's emphasis on spatial relationships, layered textures, and manipulation of light are in synergistic alignment with Silverstein's own artistic exploration, creating an effortless dialog between the art and the space it inhabits.
The cantilevers and other spectacular elements of the architecture informed the art selections by the architect. The trio of photographic works on paper in the dining room collectively harmonize with the architectural planes, steel stairs suspended nearby, and reflections of the pool beyond, while the vertically-oriented, curved and columnar shapes in Black Queen balance the airy volumes and geometry of the living room.
The selection of a trio of works on paper by artist Steven Silverstein were informed by the architectural elements of the space: Haywire II, Tangerine Dream, Spaces Within II (30" x 40" each, framed).
The vertically-oriented curved and columnar shapes in Black Queen (64" x 44", framed) balance the airy volumes and geometry of the living room.
A photographic work on canvas, On the Boulevard, was installed as a shared focal point upon descending the interior stairs from the second floor, echoing the layered movement of light from the brise-soleil high above it.
In the photographic work, On the Boulevard (40.5 x 30" canvas), the artist deploys a sense of light movement similar to the sun moving across the brise-soleil.
Silverstein's sensitivity in his work to light and shadow and architectural forms are a nod toward the artist's and architect's shared passion for modernism. Kovac discusses his foundation in the modernist movement in Sense of Space: Elements of California Modernism.
Michael Webb’s book Sense of Place: Elements of California Modernism (Pepperdine University Press), in conjunction with the Split House Project.