Viewings Room

CANVAS ON EDGE

STALLMAN STUDIO

 

Jason Hallman and Stephen Stum are the two artists behind the portmanteau name Stallman. Created in 2012, the duo produces unprecedented artworks, redefining canvases. Carefully dyeing and folding long and thin strips of fabric, they completely reinvent the medium, and give a new role and a new light to what we usually consider as a mere supporting surface.

Completely complementary, the duo acts like both hemispheres of the brain, and together they work to create pieces halfway between paintings and sculptures. The rich gradients featured in their works act as epitomes of the hues present in nature, channelling the very essence of the beauty around us.

The duo attributes much of their inspiration to the color theorists of the 1950s and 1960s, specifically Josef Albers, the German American painter and art theorist who argued that colour, due to its inseparability from its surroundings, is the most relative medium in art.

 

 

“We create together, one acting as the right side of the brain and the other the left,” says Stallman.

Stallman
Outer Limits, 2020
Canvas on Edge
182,9 x 121,9 cm
72 x 48 in

Stallman
Hot Stuff, 2020
Canvas on Edge
152.4 x 152.4 cm
60 x 60 in

 

Canvas on Edge:

Stallman is pioneering a new technique and new art form using paint and canvas as sculpture, naming this body of work “Canvas on Edge”. They are taking canvas and paint and giving it a creative edge. Canvas has been given the leading role, creating form, highlight and movement.

The cut edge of the canvas creates an elevated line drawing and when seen at an angle, fields of color emerge as your perspective to the piece changes. Each length of painted canvas is bonded to itself and to the background creating a rigid structure within the frame. The hue of the painted canvas reflects on the background creating a spectrum of color. By using reflected light, pigment and structure they multiply the hues and tones within each sculpture.

Stallman
Circadian Rhythms, 2020
Canvas on Edge
106.7 x 182.9 cm
42 x 72 in

Stallman
Dreamliner, 2020
Canvas on Edge
121,9 x 182,9 cm
48 x 72 in

Stallman
Spark of Light, 2020
Canvas on Edge
106.7 x 182.9 cm
42 x 72 in

 

“This union of dynamic minds dissolves the boundaries of what is possible, turning the ordinary into extraordinary.”

 

When seen at an angle, the elevation of the canvas edge creates fields of colors that emerge as one's perspective to the piece changes. The hues of the canvas reflect on the artwork's background, thus creating an intricate spectrum of colors and shadows. The artists use light reflections, pigments and composition in order to multiply the variations and tones within each sculpture. 
 
As a testimony to Stallman's professionalism - additionally to their talent -, the finishing of the work is faultless: to preserve it against moisture, discoloration and the test of time, each piece is sealed with an invisible but robust protective varnish. 

Stallman
Fleur de Lis II, 2020
Canvas on Edge
154,4 x 106,7 cm
60 x 42 in

Stallman
Flash Envy, 2020
Canvas on Edge
121.9 x 198.1 cm
48 x 78 in

Stallman
Stream of Consciousness, 2020
Canvas on Edge
121.9 x 152.4 cm
48 x 60 in