Artist Jonathan Glynn has worked in both figurative art, and in recent years, abstract expressionism. “The Abstract Paintings Of Jonathan Glynn” will open at Colm Rowan Fine Art in East Hampton on Saturday, April 23, from 5 to 7 PM and will run through May 22. The artist started his career in art after receiving a BFA from Tufts University and an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art. He has since been a represented artist for over four decades.
Glynn is also well known on the East End for his work with Wing Over Haiti, which he founded in 2010 after the devastating earthquake hit the region. As a pilot with a small aircraft he began flying in and out of Haiti delivering medical supplies, food, and aid. Today the foundation has grown to run two school facilities with over 300 students. Wings Over Haiti also feeds the students two meals each day and provides medical attention.
Fifty percent of the proceeds from the sale of paintings in the upcoming show will go to benefit the foundation. We caught up with Glynn to learn more.
Can you describe your work as an artist and your artistic process?
I try to make original paintings that are inspired by abstract expressionism, including the overall rhythmic application of paint and the resulting layering of paint. I think some of [Jackson] Pollock’s work with color were clear inspiration for my overall working method. However, I am trying to build paintings over time that have more depth and emotion and color as an evolution of those more established ideas combining my ideas with the continuing evolution of Abstract Expressionism.
Instead of having decorative abstract painting, I look at it, and if it is too decorative or has too much familiar content, I am always going to look for a way to change that. I want the painting, each painting, to give me an experience. I know it is from me and my hand, and from my own breath and my own movement, but I look to get out of myself when I paint. I always know that there is a certain violence, a certain inner violence in me that just doesn’t want to make a pretty picture for its own sake.
The aesthetic is not methodical. It doesn’t look like anything. In fact, I work hard to try not to have a didactic sense of the painting before I even start. If anything, it’s more of a rapport. And it takes a lot of energy. Sometimes, it will take me all day. When I start, it could take a short period of time, but most likely it takes longer because I have to wait and look and see what it means and how I can change it.
Let’s talk about Wings over Haiti. Tell us about the work you do and what inspired you to start this foundation?
I had my pilot’s license and I was flying to Florida when I realized that jets of volunteers could not get into Haiti after the 2010 earthquake so I flew directly to Haiti to procure surgical size medical supplies and anesthesia for outreach clinics that were doing amputations without the aforementioned medical supplies. This brought some national attention to what I was doing and because of it I started an organization that now builds schools in Haiti. We have two schools with over 300 children that hopefully will be going on to college.
You have a solo exhibit coming up at Colm Rowan Fine Art Gallery in East Hampton. Tell us a little about the show and what viewers can expect.
It is my hope that the viewers will take away a sense of joy, surprise and a thoughtful intensity from these paintings. These paintings and surfaces are meant to be touched, not only on the surface by hand but also from the perspective of the viewer’s experience from the heart. The interpretation of these abstract paintings are really up to the viewer and with a full scan of the content of the painting one should find many layers and many surprises as the paintings have evolved over time in that process.
What’s next for Wings over Haiti and for you as an artist?
We are having our annual Benefit for Wings over Haiti at the airport again this year on July 16. Fifty percent of the proceeds of any sales of my show opening on April 23 will be a tax-deductible contribution to Wings Over Haiti. With this in mind, Colm Rowan’s generosity and hard work cannot be underestimated. I’ve never worked with a gallery owner who is as insightful, empathetic, encouraging, generous, and articulate, as Colm.
In terms of what’s next for my work, my work is a constant evolution from one painting to the next that both surprises me and hopefully the viewer with refreshing ideas. That will continue to inspire me and hopefully the viewer.
