In the late nineties, Joe Bradley settled in New York where his subject matter shifted from landscapes to abstraction with the intention « to inject a bit of irony »[1] into his work, as the artist explained. Bradley's style soon crystallized in a series of ‘Modular’ paintings comprised of monochromatic rectangles assembled in anthropomorphic shapes. While producing these geometric totems, Bradley simultaneously continued his drawing and painting practice, establishing a dialogue with his monochromes that culminated with his ‘Schmagoo Paintings’. Despite the ostensibly reductive and nonfigurative aspects of his work, Bradley's biomorphic forms and symbols consistently produce a sense of familiarity. His black silhouettes of dancing figures, abstract oil compositions featuring overlapping colors and shapes, and more recent ‘Cave’ paintings - made up of blocks of colored oil stick applied to exposed canvas - continue to evince his characteristically expressionistic and rudimentary aesthetic. Evolving like a chameleon painter in a range of styles, Bradley has also begun recently to experiment with figurative forms in sculpture.
[1] Joe Bradley, interview with Eric Troncy, 'FROG', Fall-Winter 2014-2015