Nat Friedman and Erik Laffer

PAINTING AND SCULPTURE, MAPS AND MATH INTERSECT IN 
SURFACE AND LIGHT AT ALBANY CENTER GALLERY

From June 19 to July 14, 2012, Albany Center Gallery presents Surface and Light, featuring the work of Erik Laffer and Nat Friedman.
“Both Laffer’s abstract paintings and Friedman’s mathematics-influenced sculptures have logical and technical roots but appear organic and visceral, with their grainy, weathered texture and sharp sense of movement,” said Tony Iadicicco, ACG’s Creative Director. “This show highlights two cerebral and accomplished local artists dedicated to continually exploring the boundaries of their respective mediums.”

An opening reception will be held on July 6 from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Albany Center Gallery, 39 Columbia Street, Downtown Albany.

About the Artists

Erik Laffer is a painter based in Saratoga Springs, New York. He is a self-made artist who got his start selling his work on the streets of New York City, then later at numerous art fairs. He was one of three artists selected as an “Up and Coming Artist to Watch” by the Paradise City Art Fair, and was also the youngest member ever invited to join Oakroom, the exclusive Albany artist group. After initially experimenting with landscapes and figurative work, Laffer truly found his footing when he began his Cartography series in 2005. This representational abstract body of work utilizes maps and symbols as a means of exploring Laffer’s identity and view on the world.

Nat Friedman is a sculptor and printmaker currently residing in Albany, New York, who works with materials such as steel, wood, and stone. He was a professor at the University of Albany’s department of mathematics from 1968 to 2000. When Friedman took a sculpture class in 1971, he discovered his passion for sculpture, and realized that he could combine the expressiveness of sculpture with the logical principles of math. He is influenced by such groundbreaking sculptors as Jean Arp, Constantin Brancusi, and Henry Moore and by various sources such as natural forms, topology, landscape, and architecture.