Boston Street Gallery hosts “Paula Cahill: One-liner,” the artist’s first exhibition with the gallery, located at 2539 E. Boston St., Philadelphia.
On view May 5 to June 10, with an opening reception to meet the artist from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, May 6, the exhibition debuting some of Cahill’s newest work, will be the Bucks County artist’s sixth solo exhibition in the Philadelphia region.
Cahill creates linear abstract compositions that are often comprised of a single, luminous line that meanders, changes color, and seamlessly connects back to itself.
As she prepares to paint, Cahill mixes up to 100 gradients of color derived from her memories of scuba diving among tropical fish on the worldʼs coral reefs. By repeatedly laying down the colorful gradients one brushstroke at a time, she creates radiant, light-filled lines that change color hundreds of times, reflecting a quality reminiscent of the bioluminescence that emanates from sea-life.
Her work is interactive, inviting the viewer to track a meandering, color-changing path.
She strives to push the historical conversation with line into the contemporary and elevate the integral role it has played in art, design, and the sciences since its early appearance in rock and cave drawings. Based on personal experience and multiple sources, each piece is unique with lines often hinting at representation and questioning the threshold of the real.
Cahill’s work is part of the collections at The Charles Library, PNC Bank, Fox School of Business, Cira Center, Park Towne Place, the Westtown School, Glen Meade Trust, Howard Gittis Student Center, Capital One, Morgan Stanley, The Londoner, MM Partner, Aramark, and numerous private collections throughout the United States.
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