Reign in blood...

Blood as medium, blood as metaphor. Blood of a poet, encased in resin: splashed, pooled, spun out like a sunburst, and layered, layered, layered. With a base of clear plexi for support. The gallery's white walls act as a reflector; the panapoly of reds glow. (Deep space, indeed.) Metaphysical and profoundly beautiful, there's nothing else like this. As scarlet tapers into tangerine, ruby trails puddle and crack. "UR 4" is a big bang of color, a pomegranate and persimmon iris. Eagles calls these "energy pieces", they're suffused with a whole lot more than cow blood. "UR" stands for Ultimate Rebirth, which would be nirvana; the hues are the saffron and claret worn by Buddhist monks. As the world turns...another work, "Conduit 1", comprises a peephole of sumptuous crimson, a planetary construct, a primal form pimpled with "sealed-in protein air bubbles". As lit, the translucent disc gains a crescent-moon shadow, cast by the black--actually, preserved blood--surround. I kept on staring and staring; attraction infused with awe. Reproduction doesn't do these paintings justice, they must be seen in person.
Medium as metaphor...


Jordan Eagles, "New Blood", at Merge
205 W. 20 st.
212-929-7505
through May 3
www.mergegallery.com

images, from top:

UR4, 2007
36 x 36 x 3 inches
blood preserved with resin on Plexiglas

Conduit 1, 2007
36 x 36 x 3 inches
blood preserved with resin on Plexiglas