Stephen Gay (b. 1993) makes expansive, gestural paintings that hover between figuration and abstraction. Referencing prehistoric art, the American West, and his own body, Stephen’s densely layered paintings embrace the physicality of the medium. Individual lyrical marks blend together to suggest figures and landscapes embedded throughout the canvas.
Stephen’s most recent work explores themes of masculinity, our connection to nature, and our compulsive attraction to the picture itself. He resists the cheapness of quickly generated and rapidly consumed images, and instead makes pictures that are meant to be viewed slowly.
Stephen completed his BA at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2016 and earned his MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2023. He received a Fulbright Grant to work in India and was selected for a residency at the Kylemore Notre Dame Global Center in Ireland. He has exhibited internationally in both solo and group exhibitions. He is currently based in Bozeman, Montana.
I make gestural paintings that hover between figuration and abstraction. My paintings emphasize the moment of paint application with individual lyrical marks blending together to suggest figures and landscapes embedded throughout the canvas. My work is often densely layered and resistant to quick reads. In a world that prioritizes quick downloads of information, I hope to make paintings that take time to view and reward viewers with new surprises over time. My most recent work explores our connection to nature and our compulsive attraction to the picture itself. I believe in the sublime power of beauty, and hope to make compelling images that contain more power and substance than many of the cheap images that oversaturate our modern life. I believe that there is value in slowing down and having physical experiences that remind us of our tangible connections to the people and places around us, and I try to make paintings that nudge the viewer into simple, sensory encounters with the beauty of our world.
