PASSED OUT

Dorland’s paintings draw from his own upbringing in small-town Alberta to reveal the unexpected beauty and sordid underside of suburban life. Combining an array of painting techniques, Passed Out depicts a group of adolescent boys in an empty parking lot. The surrounding buildings are painted in a heavy gray impasto that emphasizes their dull, monotonous forms and contrasts with the flat application of paint that renders the sky and pavement. Faceless figures bear unexpected hot pink haloes, an effect of Dorland’s underpainting that separates the group from its otherwise nondescript setting. Two teens stand above a third, sprawled on the cement, while another stands off to the side. Although their activities are concealed, the mischievous nature of their conduct is clear. Dorland’s investigation affirms the re-emergence of narrative as subject matter and displays a rich and nuanced understanding of the language of painting.