…The dream of my life
Is to lie down by a slow river
And stare at the light in the trees–
To learn something by being nothing…

– Mary Oliver

Solange Roberdeau makes work that emphasizes slowing down and seeking out the creative potential in our immediate environments. Informed by found objects and material processes, she is attracted to directness and minimalism in the work she produces as well as in her process of making it.

Working primarily with metal leaf and ink on wood, paper and fabric, she teases out her own nuanced collection of shapes and their interactions, the result being drawings that are a record of looking and responding to form and materials. She consciously promotes a tension between serendipity and control, which she explores by pairing organic with geometric shapes.

Her pieces speak to the fluid nature of perception -of place and it’s details, with a focus on re-contextualizing what she sees to make it at once familiar and new. These drawings are both abstract and heavily rooted in the tacit world with the welcome potential for continuous reinterpretation.

Roberdeau relates to her art making practice as an undertaking not dissimilar to “taking a walk.” It is measured and deliberate, but its fruitfulness is equally contingent on chance. She looks for a union (in art as in life) of self with place. Consequently, the art she makes points to this concern through its union of forms. When she begins work on a piece, it begins with an action that delivers something tacit that she can later refer to back in her studio. Similar to the ethos of a walk, a general framework is there but the outcome is an unknown.

Born in Northern California, Solange graduated with a BFA in Printmaking from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2005. She went on to receive her MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art’s MFAST Program in 2012, after which she returned to the west coast where she currently lives and works.

Second Saturday Gallery Reception:
December 14, 5pm-8pm
Free admission

Mendocino Art Center hosts a free Second Saturday Artists Reception each month. Enjoy snacks and wine, and meet the exhibiting artists. December’s reception also serves as our Holiday Celebration and a thank you to the community for their continued support. Please join us for holiday cheer and hors d’oeuvres and wine. Browse for great gift ideas in our Gallery Store and December’s exhibitions. Mendocino Art Center’s Artists in Residence will also open their studios to the public.