Clint Jukkala
Clint Jukkala’s work proceeds from the Modernist tradition of geometric abstraction, but raises it to a fever pitch with its intensity of color and complexity of form. The paintings are informed by the geometries that surround us – not only the grids of architecture and the city which deeply fascinated twentieth-century artists, but also the structures of the now ubiquitous computer with its circuitry, algorithms, and pixellated graphics. Jukkala’s paintings also walk a fine line between abstraction and representation. On the one hand, they appear completely non-representational, compelling arrangements of colors, lines, and rectilinear planes on a flat surface. On the other hand, the sly insertion of a horizon line instantly creates depth and space, and the collection of shapes coheres into hyper-technological mechanisms or works of architecture. Since the artist gives no clues to scale, he may be suggesting microscopic chips or vast interplanetary spaceports – or both. While ambiguous, and open to individual interpretation, Jukkala’s paintings clearly suggest an abundant energy and dynamic interconnectivity of phenomena.
Clint Jukkala resides in New Haven, CT
Image: Clint Jukkala, Displacement, 2006, oil on canvas, 74” x 99”, Lent by the Artist
