Joshua Hagler

Joshua Hagler’s vast oil paintings call for a reappraisal of perceived wisdom regarding everything from Christian mysticism and cultural identity to prophecy and philosophy.

“In science, the French eighteenth-century chemist and biologist Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier discovered the law of conservation of mass that nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed. Here lies the pathos to Joshua’s convoluted mental and pictorial universe to date.” David Anfam

Hagler’s work interacts with a broad spectrum of subjects, including his own middle American upbringing, the 19th century exploration of North America, modern science fiction and the traditions of Italian religious art. Through his visual work, Hagler confronts ideas of extreme religious experience and notions of wider cultural and social identities. To tackle these extensive concepts, Hagler produces sweeping canvases. His scenes are often distorted by gestural smears of fluid brushwork that enter into realms of abstraction. Hagler has commented that these abstract forms should appear to the viewer as manifestations of unformed recollections, reflecting the ephemeral process of memory. “I want the paintings to have the feeling of vague recollection, a memory that starts to form but disappears,” Hagler said.