Nick Terry
Nick Terry was born in 1966 in Paris, France. He lives and works in Marfa, Texas, USA.
I met Nick Terry at the Chinati/Judd-Foundation in Marfa, Texas, where he was working. With his close connections to Donald Judd’s work, it seemed reasonable to assume that his artistic position would be minimalistic. Nevertheless I was surprised when he showed me his watercolours: works of intense colour on thick handmade paper, applied with a wide brush in many thin washes, which leads to an intensification of the colours.
“Colors have been my main focus and primary compositional element for several years now. I find all colors, in their original pigment state, to be interesting subjects in their own right. A rich base of one color is built up with many thin washes. I find this color beautiful but as a visual image it does not convey all I wish to see; it feels incomplete. Seeking a subtle balance of warm and cool tones in the image, subsequent washes are applied to the dominant base color. When a tonal balance, and a sense of volume and depth is achieved (often after weeks), the painting feels ‘alive, inclusive, and complete’. A history of accumulated layers can be seen along the borders.” Nick Terry