PATRICK MAISANO – ARTIST’S STATEMENT


"I paint in an attempt to create a beautiful object; an object that
resonates with some quality of soul or magic. The scribe is aware
that the subject of his record is sacred and therefore he labors
willfully to infuse his work with beauty. I share this same
willfulness in creating a painting."

The enchanting imagery found in Patrick Maisano's paintings
tells a universal story in the timeless language of myth. This is
art that elicits a response from our most basic level; pure,
instinctual, spiritually primal. Mythical beings, mystical beasts,
and religious iconography combine to create magical
compositions that are joyful, haunting, metaphysical, and very
beautiful. His work is transcendental and immediate, masculine
and feminine, testimonial and celebratory.

" The imagery speaks to the mystery of our existence, it does
not provide answers, rather it testifies to the presence of the
mystery." Maisano believes that Carl Jung's idea of a
collective unconscious, "the part of the psyche that retains and
transmits the common psychological inheritance of mankind" is
useful in explaining the archetypal imagery contained in his
work.

Regarding his creative process Maisano states, "My paintings
begin without a preconceived subject. Paint is applied to the
canvas in a manner which establishes variations in values;
within these light and dark patterns, forms are suggested. Once
a form is accepted, it is then deliberately developed into the
imagery of the painting."

Born April, 1964 in New Haven, Connecticut, Maisano
graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1986. He was
about to enter graduate studies in pursuit of a fine art teaching
credential when a compelling force drew him in a different
direction. Maisano spent a year contemplating a religious
vocation at a Franciscan Community in New York City.
During this period of deliberation over a religious life, a reading
of Otto Rank's Art and Artist resonated with personal truth and
Maisano decided that his intended path was that of an artist imagery of the painting."
rather than a priest. In 1992, Maisano left New York for
California where he constructed a reclusive lifestyle devoted
solely to his art. Since 1992 Patrick Maisano has shown his
work annually, and his paintings have been placed in distinguished
American collections.

To clarify esthetic theory, Joseph Campbell looks to James
Joyce in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Joyce
distinguishes "proper art" as that which truly belongs to Art,
and affirms Aquinas' statement that the esthetic object renders
three moments. Translated from Latin the moments are,
"Wholeness", "Harmony", and "Radiance." Perhaps these are
the qualities that best define the Art of Patrick Maisano.

PATRICK MAISANO - RESUME


Selected Exhibitions

2001"Neo-Madonna" Silvermine Gallery, New Canaan, CT
2000 "Winter 2000" New Arts Gallery, Bantam, Connecticut
1999 "Magic And Myth", Bachelier-Cardonsky, Kent, Connecticut
1998 New York Art Exchange, New York, New York
1996 "20 Recent Paintings", Carmichael Gallery, Santa Monica, California
1996 Weinstein Gallery, San Francisco, California
1996 Steve Stein Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, California
1995 "Myths", Humphries Gallery, San Francisco, California
1994 "Patrick Maisano", Roy G. Biv Fine Art, Palm Springs, California
1993 Metropolitan Art, Los Angeles, California

Selected Collections

The Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, Florida
Sean Penn & Robbin Wright Penn, Marin County, California
Jena & Michael King, Kingworld Entertainment, Los Angeles, California
Ann & Jerry Moss, A&M Records, Los Angeles, California
E. Briant & Mary Wells, Los Angeles, California
Kim Manocherian, The Manocherian Foundation, New York, New York
Dr. David Ramsey, New York, New York
Linda & Jeffrey Hammes, Chicago, Illinois