ROSS BLECKNER New York City
From the origins of the Mudd Club in New York City at 77 White Street in 1978 where Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, David Bowie, Debbie Harry, Andy Warhol, Betsey Johnson, Julian Schnabel, Ana Sui, Lou Reed, Fab 5 Freddy would gather to collaborate, share ideas and dance to a mix of music with a sound system designed by Brian Eno, Ross Bleckner has emerged as one of New York’s finest painters.
Ross has created a series of paintings of red and white blood cells floating in space reflecting on his experiences with his friends and the Artist community in New York as the AIDS Epidemic erupted.
Ross paints flowers and hummingbirds in a dreamlike, ethereal way as if they are present and at the same time only in our memories. Ross shared with me, many of his inspirations for his Art and paintings as he embraces Life and its fragile balance with loss and impermanence.
On a Studio Visit with Ross Bleckner, my first Artist Portrait, making sure not to disturb him while he was working, I made myself as small as possible and moved silently around his studio as he began to paint. I knew then that I had entered a sacred space and was being given a gift as he allowed me to witness his meticulously, beautiful process. Winston, his sweet dog watched me as I photographed.