MARGARET COE American, b. 1941
Chicago by Rail #9, 2014
Oil on canvas
30 x 30
MARGARET COE - EXHIBIT STATEMENT
CHICAGO BY RAIL; Retracing the Oregon Trail..in reverse
These paintings are interpretations of the American West as experienced from the window of a train...fleeting scenes viewed in rapid succession. The animation of the windows accompanied by a rhythm section {provided by the engine} and the insistent vibration of the tracks intensifies ones awareness of time and terroir. The series is about landscape and motion. It also strikes me as a metaphor for that universally shared reality: continuous change.
I was traveling with my husband in June of 2013 to visit our son and his family in East Aurora, New York. I took many a “Hail Mary” photograph as we chugged along. Back home in my studio, these shots became the basis and starting point for series of paintings. The subjects vary from lumber mills along the Columbia River to farm towns and cities viewed from the grittier side of the tracks. After our arrival in Chicago we made a night train connection to Buffalo. Therefore the series ends in Illinois, the launching point of the Lewis and Clarke expedition.
Chicago by Rail: New Work by Margaret Coe - June 4 – July 12, 2014
Schrager & Clarke Gallery is pleased to present new work by Eugene artist, Margaret Coe. Coe’s work, familiar to our gallery visitors, is distinguished by her vivid use of color. These new pieces are no exception.
Inspired by a cross-country train trip, these 17 paintings depict American landscapes, towns, and cities. Bright cars drive past colorful storefronts; moonlight outlines nighttime drivers in stark white. Freight yards, power line towers, and industrial scenes appear along the rail line, in sharp contrast to soft rural landscapes and toy-like towns. As a group, the work captures the flickering, changing scene experienced through the train window.