Russell Tyler's paintings are all about surface and color. The works are playful experiments in abstraction where the artist interweaves curved striations using a fixed palette of three to five subtle and related colors for each painting. The shapes evoke ripples in water or starbursts — forms that emanate infinitely. Tyler varies his paint handling, allowing for washes and drips to form between the more densely built up areas. Each work is titled with initials that signify the colors within it, creating another layer of abstraction as the perceived colors do not always align what the titles indicate. These humble, modest-sized paintings lead the eye back and forth across sprawling compositions to a degree that belies their scale.
