Ratio 3 – James Siena – Phased Resonators and Reciprocating Transitions

Eight bridges connect the San Francisco Bay, so it is an apt name for a gallery platform that brings the Bay Area art world together.

Our mission is to maintain a vibrant gallery scene, despite restrictions on travel, celebrations and other larger gatherings. We want to support our artists by informing and entertaining curators, collectors and critics with potent online exhibitions of their work.

On the first Thursday of every month, we will launch 8 shows of artists relevant to the Bay Area. They may be working in this place, long considered an epicenter of change, or deeply engaged in the conversations the Bay Area holds dear, whether it’s related to technology, the environment, social justice or sexual identity, to name a few. In addition, each month will highlight the crucial work of a Bay Area non-profit arts organization.

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Founding Committee

Claudia Altman-Siegel, Kelly Huang, Sophia Kinell, Micki Meng, Daphne Palmer, Ratio 3, Sarah Wendell Sherrill, Jessica Silverman, and Elizabeth Sullivan

Ambassador Committee

Sayre Batton & Maja Thomas, Joachim & Nancy Bechtle, Matt Bernstein, Sabrina Buell, Wayee Chu & Ethan Beard, Natasha Boas, Douglas Durkin, Carla Emil, Matt & Jessica Farron, Lauren Ford, Ali Gass, Stanlee Gatti, Brook Hartzell & Tad Freese, Pamela & David Hornik, Katie & Matt Paige, Putter Pence, Becca Prowda & Daniel Lurie, Deborah Rappaport, Komal Shah & Gaurav Garg, Laura Sweeney, The Battery, Robin Wright, Sonya Yu & Zack Lara

Sponsors

Lobus, The Space Program

Ratio 3

James Siena

“What did I do a lot of when I was a teenager growing up in Palo Alto? I went hiking. I went out to the High Sierra and I would come back and hang these maps all around my walls — the headwaters of the Current River, Mount Tyndall, Milestone Mountain — all these places I still love to go to. Mapping happens in a lot of the work, but I think it’s being subverted in most of these things. They’re not really an homage to the map but something else, emergent form.”
–James Siena

Ratio 3 is pleased to present a selection of new paintings and watercolors by James Siena from the exhibition Phased Resonators and Reciprocating Transitions currently on view at the gallery through October 31st, 2020. The selection featured here exemplifies Siena’s unique balance of methodical, systems-based abstraction and biomorphic lines. Working between the intimate scale of his Quarantine Watercolor group and the expansive surfaces of his largest acrylic-on-linen paintings to date, Siena builds immersive fields of color and line from unexpectedly simple origins. In each work, graphite and charcoal lines proceed concentrically, repeating and gradually amplifying their hand-drawn irregularities, forming seemingly complicated, irregular grids. Throughout the works, patterns, topologies, and harmonies emerge from rudimentary systems, showcasing Siena’s singular ability to reveal the elegance within complexity.

To schedule a private appointment to visit the exhibition, please contact the gallery or use the link provided here.