BRIAN O'NEILL

up on Long Island, New York and spent many hours at the ocean, salt water estuaries, and lakes that decorate its landscape. Now in Rochester, New York with access to the Finger Lakes and the many inlets that line Lake Ontario, he finds further nuances of water for inspiration. The element of water is magical, powerful, and always changing. Its surface creates an abstract mirror of color, depth, and movement. O’Neill uses these innate qualities in his work. Tall, graceful reeds and Water Iris rise majestically in O’Neill’s paintings. Among the lilies can be glimpses of what canopies above, allowing the viewer to imagine what exists beyond the parameter of his canvas.

In addition to the watery beauty that inspires O’Neill, his other works evoke his love of gardening and flowers as subjects. Once again, he returns to the basic elements that make up our world. O’Neill combines rich, dynamic metallic textures as a backdrop for lush and graceful floral imagery. Aluminous copper, bronze, gold and silver hues dance on the canvas and come alive with the changing light. The soft nature of the flowers juxtaposes to the hard and vibrant metal, both from the earth, existing harmoniously in O’Neill’s art.