The Museum of Modern Art, in New York City, has purchased for its permanent collection a limited edition, hand-printed book by artist James Siena that was developed and published by Flying Horse Editions. The book has also recently entered the collections of Stanford University and the Johnson Art Museum at Cornell University.
As his dealer, Pace Gallery, writes, “James Siena is known for his unique process, creating intricate geometric abstractions driven by predetermined self-imposed sets of rules, or ‘visual algorithms.’ By establishing a basic unit and action and repeating it ad infinitum, Siena allows the unpredictability of his self-generated system to govern the final outcome of his complex picture plane, while still maintaining the presence of the artist’s hand. The painstakingly crafted works demonstrate that even a small change to an initial variable produces vastly different end results.
Sequence I (2009), is a hand-printed, double-sided accordion book that stretches seventeen-feet long. The double-sided book follows a linear, geometric pattern as it coalesces and unwinds through thirty-six pages, black intertwining with red, and in reverse. The abstraction climaxes on two final frames (back and front), where the sequence reaches its full realization and the rule is maximized, having gone through seventeen ‘moves.’”
Flying Horse Editions is the University of Central Florida’s fine art research facility and non-profit publisher of limited-edition prints, artist books, and art objects by internationally renowned artists. It is located in the UCF Center for Emerging Media in downtown Orlando. FHE offers unique opportunities for artists, students, faculty, and collector-patrons.
Flying Horse Editions offers artists the opportunity to work with FHE technicians to push the boundaries of their work while heightening the education of UCF students. Faculty and the community are enriched through this creative exchange and expression.
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Video produced by Stephen Allen Photography.