(Canadian, b. 1973 - )

Born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada in 1973 from Polish descent, James Verbicky lived the majority of his early life between Victoria and Vancouver, British Columbia. As an adult, Verbicky moved to the U.S., and after struggling with legitimacy for many years, was awarded the rarely bestowed "Extraordinary Ability" green card from the U.S. government due to his extensive involvement with a myriad of museums, galleries, charity organizations, and publications across America.
 
Verbicky has developed a strong presence in the contemporary art market in the U.S. and abroad, and is widely known for his atmospheric abstract expressionist work; his use of light and color described by critic Peter Frank as "suggesting impossible, intangible places". In 2008, his work was selected for a 110 year-old juried exhibition at the Louvre, in Paris, France, with the Societie Nationale des Beaux-Arts.

In 2010, Verbicky debuted the media paintings, a series that brings an entirely new, sculptural element to his oeuvre. By utilizing foreign vintage paper and abstract form, Verbicky bridges the gap between sculpture and painting by binding fragments of vintage media to one another, double-exposing language and image and melting them in upon themselves. He unearths and layers the remnants of dozens of decades of disparate generations, transcending simple words and images and allowing the pieces to become objects containing the essence of human culture.

Verbicky original works are counted in thousands of private, public, celebrity and museum collections in countries all over the world.

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ON THE MEDIA PAINTINGS:

"...(the media paintings) bridge the gap between sculpture and painting by binding fragments of vintage media to one another, double-exposing language and image and melting them in upon themselves. By unearthing and layering the remnants of dozens of decades of disparate generations, the media paintings transcend simple words and images and become objects containing the essence of human culture." - James Verbicky

ON ABSTRACT WORKS:

"My work focuses on the study and communication of atmosphere and light, the making of intangible, impossible places. My goal is to filter the senses through transparencies of color, attempting to screen light and create atmospheres that confuse the eye and inspire the viewer to see beyond or through the painting, luring it in search of something familiar, something recognizable. The pieces themselves are often difficult to photograph due to widespread blurring; creating elusive scenes that can be widely interpreted. My goal is to challenge each viewer to find their own meaning, to cause them to pause and seek out their own definition of what lies before them." - James Verbicky