Aleksandra Rdest

This body of work was created after my arrival in Newfoundland from Toronto; it was fertilized by the drive across the country to reach this place. Coming from a place of human proportions; everything is new to me here. The scale is epic. Rock and trees, lakes and the ocean. You can become consumed by the vastness; the enormity of ground you could cover. Or, you can become consumed by the details; the lichen and mosses can bring you to a standstill.

While being an extension of my previous painterly pursuits, this work is a clarification of my ideas regarding the landscape in abstract painting: through abstraction we are able to see both the microscopic and the macro views through layers of one another in a unified plane.


These pieces are created from a longing for a space and place which is within our reach but outside the realm of human experience; they create an experience that is formed from memories and desires. They have a seductive quality which draws the viewer in and suggestive details which hold their attention. I construct my paintings from many translucent layers of colour to create a deep rich space.

These pieces were created in response to a particular place yet I feel they reflect the essence of the Canadian landscape in a way that is fresh and distinctly contemporary. Using references to film and digital photography I am re-iterating the mediated way that we experience the world; often through a window or a screen, rather than having a direct encounter. I use this method to call into question how we distance ourselves from our surroundings while living in them.

Aleksandra Rdest