High tech and spontaneous, the newest black and white drawings by artist Phillis Ideal are created on her iPhone. Gestural and a little calligraphic, the presentation of “Urban Energy” literally flowed from the artist’s fingertips using the latest digital technology.

ARTnews Contributing Editor Ann Landi observes “They bring to mind Asian calligraphy and ink-wash drawings, though Ideal’s shapes and squiggles refer more to the contemporary idioms of cartoons and graffiti.  What is remarkable is the range of effects achieved on a tiny cell-phone screen, from snaking lines that look like they should have been made with a sweep of the arm to subtle tones that range from pale gray to blackest black.’

“Phillis’ process and methodology has always been very impressive,” says gallery co-director David Eichholtz. “Yet this new series is particularly fascinating in its use of technology while still maintaining that ‘hand-made’ quality.”

About the Artist:

Born in Roswell, New Mexico, Phillis Ideal received her BFA from the University of New Mexico and her MFA from the University of California Berkeley.  In addition to a long exhibition career, she has taught at the University of New Mexico, Sarah Lawrence College In New York, the University of California Berkeley and San Francisco State College.

Her work can be found in numerous public and corporate collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Albuquerque Museum, White and Case, New York, Prudential Insurance Collection,  Crocker National Bank, among others.