“Well Above” 1982 Charles Emery Powell Abstract Painting

“Well Above,” abstract acrylic and laqcuer painting on canvas by Charles Emery Powell circa 1982.

From Powell's estate: 
Powell graduated from the University of Colorado in 1974 with a B.F.A. in Painting and
Printmaking, having begun his undergraduate work in Engineering. He completed his senior
year as a curatorial intern under Marcia Tucker (then curator of Paintings and Sculpture) at the
Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC). While there he worked as both an exhibit preparator
and administrator for various shows including the Biennial. He also studied graduate
architectural design and urban planning at the Pratt Institute.

As an artist, Powell’s abstract paintings from the late 1970s/1980’s were executed in a variety
of mediums including acrylic, acrylic + lacquer, and fresco. Earlier works refer to his
background in printmaking and were often inspired by his interests in science, particularly
physics. Later works display a strong and often musical energy, in which patterns of large brush
strokes are over-sprayed with acrylic lacquer which is then sanded—creating a jewel-like
surface which flattens out the brush strokes while simultaneously highlighting the ‘physicality’
of them.