Anna Zorina Gallery is pleased to announce the Alexander Kaletski solo exhibition, Reggae in Paradise. The show features Kaletski’s ongoing Caribbean series that he has been developing for the past twenty years. This body of work explores the artist's enduring captivation with the sea, using a vibrant color palette and improvisational methods to capture its energy and unpredictability.
Kaletski never anticipated that he would create a Caribbean series. However, upon developing the technique that he now calls Pebbles of Light, he realized the improvisational style perfectly portrays the fascinating characters and easygoing spirit of island life. This method starts with daubing generous beads of paint directly onto the canvas. Kaletski then applies sweeping brushstrokes that create unexpected interactions with the preexisting colors. Kaletski has an initial vision and narrative for each painting, but the final outcome is always a surprise. This technique mirrors the island lifestyle of going with the flow.
Kaletski captures the region’s sensory richness through the development of layered compositions featuring bold colors, fluid brushstrokes, and dynamic gestures. The resulting textural depth reflects the complex, multi-layered rhythms of reggae music. Much like reggae, which builds on steady bass lines and syncopated beats, Kaletski’s paintings achieve a balance between smooth, continuous surfaces and rough, tactile textures. This deliberate interplay of contrasting elements reflects how harmony can be constructed in both painting and music.
ALEXANDER KALETSKI (b. 1946, Russia), immigrated to the United States in 1975. He lives and works in New York City. The artist has exhibited widely in shows internationally including New York, Mexico, China, Japan, Austria, Belarus and France. His works are included in the permanent collections of the Voorlinden Museum in the Netherlands, AMMA Foundation, the Claryville Art Center in New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Belarus, the Meeschaert Collection in France and the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Collection in California. His work has been reviewed in Architectural Digest, Associated Press, Modern Painters, Vanity Fair and National Review among other publications. Kaletski is the author of the autobiographical novel "Metro: A Novel of the Moscow Underground," an international bestseller that has been translated into fifteen languages.