“Coalesce” a Duo Show

Last week I shared about our opening reception of my latest show ‘Coalesce’ my duo show with Marta Staudinger. This week I want to give you some more insight into what this show is about and how it came to be.staudinger_olmstead_Coalesce4NAKED ROTHKO 6ft. x 4ft” by Marta Staudinger

It is my honor to be exhibiting alongside Marta Staudinger. She’s an artist, curator, and gallery owner and lectures for the Smithsonians in her spare time. I respect not only her work, and technique, but also her dedication to her business and worth ethic.Don't_Stop_Seeking_The_Light_webDon’t Stop Seeking the Light, 6ftx4ft  by Christine Olmstead

Marta and I got into contact about a year ago when I submitted to an open call at the gallery that she owns, Latela Art Gallery. After submitting to her gallery Marta offered me a solo show, which was a huge shock and just blew me away with gratitude. The show was to be in July 2018. But before my show she and I got the chance to work together on a corporate commission. She and I both created pieces for a corporate space in Tysons Corner. This was our first experience working together. When it came time to hang these large paintings in this corporate space, the person who hung our works was Bill Byrne, co-owner of The Byrne Gallery.DE NUEVO ON CLOUD 9, 58″x46″ by Marta Staudinger

Marta hosted my solo-show at her beautiful gallery, Latela, “The Divide” in the summer of 2018, which Bill and Susan of the Byrne Gallery were kind enough to attend.Dont_Stop_Making_Mistakes_webDon’t Stop Making Mistakes, 48″x48″ Sold, by Christine Olmstead

Bill owns The Byrne Gallery with his sister, Susan, after seeing the work Marta and I did together for the corporate commission and with my show, they generously offered a show to us for October 2018. They really let us have complete creative control, which you don’t often get when working with a gallery. They let us pick our sizes, colors and the way the work would be shown.marta_olmstead_CoalesceON CLOUD 9, 58×46 in, by Marta Staudinger

After Marta and I accepted their invitation to show, we got to work. We went to the gallery, measured walls and picked out the sizes of canvases that each of us would tackle. We then selected our color palette and narrowed down our palette to about 6 colors we wanted to work within. Throughout the creation process we would chat on the phone, share techniques, struggles and joys that we were experiencing while creating these pieces.  Together we created over 75 pieces for this show, including stretched works on canvas and works on paper.Don't_Stop_Changing_webDon’t Stop Changing, 36″x48″, by Christine Olmstead

The end product was better than I even imagined. It is so amazing what happens when two artists have the same parameters and color palette and create two completely different, yet cohesive bodies of work. This was a rare treat as an artist to experience this kind of freedom and collaboration.staudinger_olmstead_6TURQUOISE PEARL FROST, 48″x36″ by Marta Staudinger

We chose the name for the show based on the fact that Marta and I have come together over and over again for different collaborations and business opportunities that having a show together seemed like the most natural next step. Coalesce was a word we had talked about but hadn’t finalized until… I was in Richmond a couple of weeks before the opening of our show and I went to a brewery. The brewery only had like 4 beers on tap and one of them was called “Coalesce” it just seemed serendipitous. We chose the name “Coalesce” on the spot!  This show is about us coming together as artists to create one united body of work. I hope that Marta and I get the chance to exhibit together again!DS_But_Slow_Down_webDon’t Stop but Slow Down, 7ftx4ft, by Christine Olmstead

Thanks for reading about our fun group collaboration/great art experiment. Like and share it with your friends if you liked it or learned something. All pieces are available at The Byrne Gallery, stop by now through november 4.

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