LeMieux Galleries | 4/22-5/27 | New Orleans, LA

Dreaming of the Old Days

A sense of whimsy and wonder guide the paintings of Nathan Durfee in an upcoming exhibition

A sense of whimsy and wonder guide the paintings of Nathan Durfee. His style is instantly recognizable—elements of storybook illustration meets impressionism with a hint of cubism. But the fact of the matter is, Durfee’s style is entirely his own. When looking closely upon one of his pieces, the first thing you’ll notice are highly stylized, illustrative figures and creatures, and next, you’ll likely notice the multitude of little squares of varying colors and sizes. “Essentially it’s the idea of having this form and breaking it up into these more interesting pieces, so when you get really close you have this play of all these interlocking shapes and colors,” says Durfee, “and when you step back you see a boy playing a tuba.”

Dreaming in Greenery, oil on panel, 24 x 36"The artist is exploring exciting new avenues in an upcoming exhibition at LeMieux Galleries called Daydreams of Bygones, which is split into three parts. In one section are paintings inspired by the works of the Old Masters. For instance, Durfee’s Hymm for Gaugin is inspired by Paul Gauguin’s 1864 Young Christian Girl, and Love at First Bite was sparked by Lucas Cranach the Elder’s iconic Adam and Eve from the 16th century. Winslow’s Jacket by Durfee is a faithful recreation of Winslow Homer’s 1879 Yellow Jacket but rendered in the playful style of Durfee. “[I was drawn to] the greenery and atmosphere and the color you can pull out of it. With a lot of these paintings, I’m trying to make some sort of commentary, but sometimes others are just beautiful, and I just want to learn from their techniques,” he says. “I love collaborating with other artists. I’ve collaborated with other artists [in the past], and it really got me out of my comfort zone. So [with this theme], it was like I was collaborating with these master artists from the past.”

Hymm for Gaugin, oil on panel, 24 x 36"

Panda Finding the Truth, acrylic on vintage postcard, 3½ x 5½"

Another theme of the exhibition is daydreaming. Dreaming in Greenery captures a horned creature with blue fur, framed by green foliage, appearing gentle and at peace. Another dreamer is depicted in the simple portrait Skyler Dreaming. “A lot of my paintings have this narrative slant, and I wanted to try to separate that from my Dreamers and just focus on the figures themselves,” says Durfee.

Winslow’s Jacket, oil on panel, 24 x 36"The final theme is postcards, in which the artist found old postcards that spoke to him in some way, and then breathed new life into them. “It comes back to loving collaboration,” he says, “collaborating with vintage photographs, pulling different narratives and adding on to them.”