Parrish Road Show: Esly E. Escobar
PLAYGROUND

For Parrish Road Show 2018, painter and sculptor Esly E. Escobar (b. 1981) created Playground, a site-specific installation including an abstract figure made of 10,000 balls used in a variety of sports—tennis, soccer, golf, baseball, and basketball—surrounded by toys. The installation comments on the wide range of social strata on the East End who engage in these sports, bringing them together in a figure of positive energy.

The exhibition was hosted by ArtRemsenburg, a series of summer art shows at The Remsenburg Academy. Esly E. Escobar additionally had a solo exhibition at The Remsenburg Academy, entitled Magnum Opus, from August 19–September 10.

The Making of Playground

About Esly E. Escobar

Westhampton-based artist Esly E. Escobar was born in Guatemala and raised in the United States. His work combines techniques from Abstract Expressionism, readymade found art, assemblage and collage, and various drip painting methods. Escobar generally works in large format painting, often combining oils, acrylics, and enamels into a single work. His organic process involves positioning canvases flat on the floor, layering and dripping paint in a 360-degree angle until an “identity” or “character” is revealed from the abstractions. According to the artist, some of these non-representational characters “take on names, personalities, quirks, and background narratives of their own.” Escobar also uses diptych and triptych formats, and experiments with odd-shaped canvases and found objects—most recently, incorporating album covers of old LPs into his mixed media paintings.

Escobar’s work was featured in the solo exhibition Colorful Journey at The Remsenburg Academy, NY, summer 2017, and an earlier solo show at the gallery in 2015. His work has been featured in three group shows in 2016 (Guild Hall, East Hampton; East End Arts, Riverhead; Westhampton Library); and again at the Westhampton Library in December, 2017.  His work is in several private collections.

Parrish Road Show 2018 is generously supported in part by Sandy and Stephen Perlbinder, and Jane Wesman and Donald Savelson. Public funding provided by Suffolk County.