Monique Rollins’ new work presents an exciting new series of abstract paintings. She continues her expressive aesthetic by exploring muted tones to convey observations of surroundings in nature, society, and memory. An oasis of muted shapes traveling across the canvas transform and morph into lines that convey human experience. The play of color and line escort the viewer into negative spaces and punctuates Rollins’ investigation into the creative process. Integral to her process includes what memories and associations the viewer brings to the work as they decode the inner workings of spatial elements. 

Rollins creates visual experiences that place the viewer in vibrant and enduring habitats. Her work stems from her interest in human emotion, allusions to place, memory, and the ubiquitously fleeting moments of the conscious and unconscious. Rollins creates spirited juxtapositions of line, shape, and color. Her canvases teem with the vibrancy of captivating surface textures referencing the zone of activity between fleeting ideas of something or somewhere. Her large-scale expressive works belie the radical intimacy of her work. Forms lead to outcroppings of line; intervals of ingenious dilemmas between shapes lead the eye deeper into the picture plane, as strong vertical, horizontal, and diagonal directions of the formal elements underscore the unifying factors in her artistic statement. Rollins’ work makes the case for the way art and its language of color, line, and shape enrich a viewer’s experience of the work and ultimately the world. Rollins’ distinctly improvisational process pulsates with exuberance while maintaining a meditative quality particularly in areas of untouched canvas. By examining both the spirit and energy of creative exploration in pure abstract design, her work pushes toward a deeper vision that releases the secret to Rollins’ unbridled energy: a command of the materials at hand.