Lu Ferreira’s exhibition Tropical Nada comprises a new body of paintings elaborating Ferreira’s poignant reconfigurations of historical legacies of abstraction, serving as an astonishing introduction of the artist’s practice to New York. Ferreira begins by applying layers of oil paint to the canvas before removing much of the paint with water, which the artist relates to hand-washing laundry. Found objects – toothbrushes, air filters, and pieces of rubber – take on the role of conventional paint applicators, while others – bushings, steel brushes, brooms – are deployed to treat the canvas between “washings,” exposing concealed layers beneath the surface.
