Charles Ladson’s work isn’t new to Blue Spiral 1, but a current collection by the Georgia-based artist has a refreshed appeal on the gallery’s second floor. The oil paintings have an almost hallucinatory atmosphere. There’s an overwhelming sense of isolation, as many of the scenes take place in old, barren homes. Their hard-lined shadows and boxed-in settings bare similarities to Edward Hopper compounded with the graininess of Andrew Wyeth works. But Ladson flattens a subdued Hopper-esque color scheme and blends his figures, human and inanimate, into the ragged hardwood flooring and dingy baseboards. In his statement, Ladson calls the works a “collection of mostly bad ideas.” And this may be true when you see a young boy playing with an electric chord or a figure hoisting a rake over his head while standing in the middle of the road. bluespiral1.com
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