Page Bond Gallery: Diego Sanchez, Mary Scurlock

Chomsky’s idea about discovery is the overarching concept that drives Diego Sanchez’ artistic process. Surface, repetition, color and spatial relations are carefully developed onto each canvas. Sanchez is constantly re-inventing his approach and technique. His intent is for the psychical qualities of his paintings to posses as much significance as the formal and representational elements.

Born in Bogota, Columbia, Diego Sanchez lives and works in Richmond, Virginia. He received his MFA and BFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University. His work has been exhibited in Virginia and internationally. His work is in
many private and public collections including, Capital One, Media General, First Market Bank, and the Federal Reserve Bank.

Mary Scurlock is interested in memory and the transformation and distortion of an event as it is recalled in our minds. Her recent work on panel is of layers of facts and projected truths that develop into memory. Her chosen medium, encaustics, reveals
the environment of these abstract concepts. Embedded beneath the surface are images that reference both the past tangible experience and simultaneous internal perceptions.

Mary Scurlock lives and works in Richmond, Virginia. She received a BFA in Arts Education and a BFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University with additional studies completed in Toulouse, France. Her work has been exhibited throughout the east coast and is included in numerous private and
public collections including, Federal Reserve Bank, First Market Bank, Markel Corporation, Media One, and Capital One.
(Facebook-Page Bond Gallery Event)

Diego Sanchez mentioned how he began his process by choosing a color with no preconceptions and then building upon this through gesso layerings and then becoming happy with the piece and then continue building more layers. He would employ grids, lines, drafting sketches, geometry, 3D forms, lines, patterns, and language within each painting. His subjects would be focused on Architceture (The Coliseum), furniture (chairs), and boats. Sanchez employed BOLD colors and uses symbols from other cultures. His goal is to find a happy middle ground between physical representation and geometric pattern with a main focus on "building surfaces"
Sanchez began adding elements called "floaters" which represent the floaters of light in one's vision when dizzy. Sometimes his work is planned and sometimes it just happens with an emphasis on space and how he approaches space. Sanchez likes to take something mundane, make people look at it so it becomes special.

Mary Scurlock began working on paper employing painting, pastel, graphite, and mixed media. She had a hip operation which changed her processes and she moved away from paper and onto panels. when first creating her panels she included paper in the process, but move away from this. Her imagery focused on trees and she used subdued organic forms in her works. During her operation she told the therapist that "one leg felt like glass and the other leg felt like wood" This is represented in her process. Scurlock builds up gesso layers(5) then digs into the layers to create her forms, adds wax, then sands it back down giving the image a glossy or "glassy" sheen. Her trees and there forms were from intuitive memory with no direct refrences. She is still working on her process.