Franco DeFrancesca

"Visualizing ephemeral and elusive environments of light, air, fission and liquid crystal luminescence, these works convey notions of the surreal and the sublime that elicit a variety of sensibilities from the quizzical, the mysterious and the light-hearted."

Resin coated and mounted to layers of plywood, these digital/mixed media 'picture objects' represent interpretations of contemporary visual culture charmed by minimalism, modernism, technology and futurism.

Recalling the colour-field and the elemental geometry of mid to late twentieth century post painterly abstraction, minimalism and op-art, these works use digital imaging as a means to navigate the territory between photography and painting, mixing references to photography, painting and television display technology.

Visualizing ephemeral and elusive environments of light, air, fission and liquid crystal luminescence, these works convey notions of the surreal and the sublime that elicit a variety of sensibilities from the quizzical, the mysterious and the light-hearted.

Combining craftsmanship with digital technology in an attempt to create a hybrid art object, the “Plasma Gel” series explore 'the sophisticated ideal' of modernity, high technology and urbanity as desired both personally and culturally.

Download Artist's CV

Born in 1967 in Toronto, and a graduate of OCAD and University of Guelph, multidisciplinary artist Franco DeFrancesca investigates the links between art and technology, using digital imaging to navigate between photography and painting. His vibrant-coloured minimalist work acknowledges the colour field and geometric work of the mid-to-late 20th century.

Franco DeFrancesca explores digital/mixed media as a mode of creating abstraction in the form of an art object. His artwork investigates the links between art, memory, history and technology, using digital imaging as a means to navigate the territory between photography and painting. As a result of mixing references to photography and painting, these multi-media artworks represent reflections on contemporary visual culture charmed by minimalism, modernism, technology and futurism.

DeFrancesca’s artwork highlights the visual, temporal, and spatial qualities combined with the physical and tactile. Applying a keen sense towards craft and a reverence towards materials and processes, the abstract image is integrated with an exposed support of layered plywood, then encapsulated beneath crystalline resin, creating an ‘object of desire’. With its physical depth and highly polished glean, these works reference minimalist industrial design and refer obliquely to the urbane.

DeFrancesca has exhibited in Canada and the United States and his work can be found in corporate and public collections world-wide, including Cenovus Energy Inc., Repsol, Ovintiv (formerly Encana), Enbridge Inc. (Calgary, AB), and Rodin Law Firm Litigation Counsel (Calgary, AB), amongst others.

Art Toronto 2019

25 - 27 Oct 2019

Founded in 2000, Art Toronto is Canada’s international contemporary and modern art fair, located at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in the city’s downtown core. Providing unique access to the...

Franco DeFrancesca

Art Toronto 2019

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