SEA · SUMMIT · SKY
RAMEY CAMPBELL

SEA · SUMMIT · SKY

Essay by Anna Pillow

For the Impressionists, the advent of the camera was both a critical blow and an opportunity. What before could only be represented through the concerted work of an artist was now more faithfully reflected by a mechanical wonder, leading some at the time to question whether paintings would remain relevant at all. But this was exactly the opportunity: the beauty of many paintings is not in their absolute accounting of the scene, but in the feeling they engender. Even today, with cameras always at our fingertips, we have all felt the disappointment of not fully “capturing the moment”. Sweeping colors dull, the sound of crunching leaves underfoot is lost, and the glow of a warm smile doesn’t pop the way we remember it.

When he began painting over 30 years ago, Ramey Campbell was heavily inspired by the Impressionists. Fascinated by color and light, Campbell has since developed his own signature style, often choosing to depict local scenes in his dramatic and detailed paintings. SEA · SUMMIT · SKY features a range of such scenes, especially a recent series of paintings focused on the view from his home in the Outer Banks. These works show the sky at different times of day, and with Campbell’s signature attention to atmospheric detail, impart a sense of drama. Viewing these skyscapes evokes the feeling of sandy, salty breezes blowing over ever-shifting dunes and out to sea, creating an ephemeral experience committed to canvas by the artist’s hand.

Other works in the exhibition reflect Campbell’s technical skill with capturing light through the shining reflection of wet sand after a wave pulls back, tall trees standing sentinel along the Rapidan River, and the perfectly hazy shoulders of the Blue Ridge mountains viewed from afar.