Iyannough Road Paintings: Paintings in the Abstract Tradition by Paul Campbell

New-York and Cape Cod-based artist Paul Campbell brings a wealth of innovation and play to a highly unusual exhibition of abstract imagery featuring tracks upon a cracked, decaying surface of a Cape Cod parking lot. Nature’s persistence in altering mankind’s invention serves as Campbell’s inspiration and canvas — to capture in graphic detail fragile moments of beauty before they are gone forever.

“I have been making paintings in unusual ways for several years. My first major solo exhibition in New York in 1999 was titled Remote Control. All the paintings in the show were made with remote control cars. Since then I have experimented with a variety of ways to create art using children’s toys, GPS tracks, road repair marks, etc.

In 2009 I became fascinated with road repair marks. These tar lines are originally applied to the road surface by work crews to cover cracks and prevent further damage caused by weather. I have created a series of art works based on those repair lines. Most people probably overlook these marks, but I see them as amazing abstract sketches that can lead to paintings.

The first road repair paintings that I made were based on photos. Recently I have been applying paint directly onto the tar lines, then placing unstretched canvas on the painted lines and driving a car over the canvas. The pressure from the weight of the car results in marks that possess an unusual beautiful quality. After the initial image is created I often crop the paintings and paint back into them. I hope that viewers will find these paintings engaging and that my work will encourage others to find beauty and interest in everyday images that might otherwise be overlooked.” Paul Campbell, 2023