Having been inspired by the rich traditions and culture of Bhutan, Gem, who previously painted in impressionist and surrealist styles, has branched out from her comfort zone to create these minimalist and abstract paintings. She has embraced simple but bold primary colors that are found in many religious and decorative objects in Bhutan. Those colorful objects are generally decorated with simple but powerful geometric designs. Her resulting paintings express the truism that ‘Less is More.’

 

This exhibition contains paintings created in acrylic on cardboard, on canvas board, and on stretched canvas. The artist also composed a Haiku poem for each painting in this collection. She is particularly attracted by the minimalism of the Haiku poetic form, which she feels fits in well with the minimalist and abstract paintings presented in this exhibition.

 

These paintings convey different ideas and concepts by combining a limited number of primary colors and geometric shapes. The combination of colors and shapes in each of these paintings both conceals and reveals specific meanings and ideas. Unlike her previous surrealist paintings, in these works the artist has stripped details down to their key essence. She has retained only the core element that conveys her ideas. Each of these paintings presents an overview instead of a detailed reflection of the object or idea, letting viewers imagine and fill in the details at their own will.