John Natsoulas Gallery

Exhibition Dates: January 3- 27, 2007
Opening Reception: Saturday, January 6, 2007, 7-9 pm

John Weber graduated from college with a degree in Philosophy in 1970, but also studied art during the ‘70s with artist Fred Dalkey. Having a long career in civil service, Weber is relatively new to the world of painting. He is most influenced by the surrounding Sacramento Valley, his pastel and oil paintings portray the trees, waterways, fields, and the Valley’s ever changing light. Weber’s January exhibition includes figurative work in addition to his landscapes, including older figurative drawings from Fred Dalkey’s classes.

Melissa Chandon's work in this exhibition features Americana icons such as roadside fast food restaurants from the 50s and 60s, historical Volkswagon Buses, and agricultural vehicles. Although much of the work is viewed from or on the roadways of America, Chandon’s paintings resemble Pop Art, as she presents the iconic vehicles in isolation. Her sensibility resembles that of Tom Wesselmann in the 60s, but she clearly has found her own niche, integrating a view of the landscape with her symbols. Most of Chandon's work deals as well with compositions that David Hockney and Wayne Thibeaud address in their work.

There is a loneliness and eeriness to Chandon’s work as she isolates an object—whether it is a car, tractor, or building—and brings it to the forefront of the painting. Her images are abandoned, disappearing emblems of America. She has a clear and straightforward method of presenting her work: she gives the viewer an absolute understanding of the visual experience as one drives through the valley. The feeling of her paintings in this sense relates to Edward Hopper’s lonely depictions of modern America. Chandon’s interest lies in the rapidly disappearing traditional American tableaux; it is almost as if she is documenting the past.

Chandon grew up on a family ranch outside Winters, California. She continues to draw inspiration from that landscape, often returning to sketch and draw the familiar surroundings. “I paint narrative journals of my life, which in and of themselves, are complete worlds.” Portraying these stories within a two-dimensional surface is the challenge of her world. Snow currently resides in Northern California.