Downtown Los Angeles’ Corey Helford Gallery (CHG) is proud to announce its next major solo exhibition by award-winning and internationally renowned Canadian artist Martin Wittfooth. Set to premiere August 30th in the Main Gallery and be on view through October 4th, Deus ex Terra marks the artist’s fourth solo show at CHG.

“Duel” (full diptych) (oil on panel, left side: 36” x 72”, right side: 36” x 72”)

One of the most provocative artists of the New Contemporary movement, Wittfooth’s paintings, drawings, installations, and sculptural works use allegory and symbolism to explore themes of intersection and clash between industry and nature, as well as humanity’s influence on the environment. Many of his works also explore shamanistic themes, symbolizing humanity's attempts to connect with both external and internal nature through rituals and practices.

“Aspect of Autumn” (oil on canvas, 46” x 64”)

In Deus ex Terra, Wittfooth turns to the enduring forces and cyclical rhythms of nature as muse and mirror. The Hermetic maxim “As above, so below; As within, so without” has echoed through centuries of philosophical, mystical, and artistic inquiry, suggesting a correspondence between the macrocosm - the vastness of the cosmos - and the microcosm - the intimate world and the myriad webs that bind it, of earthly life. In Deus ex Terra, this principle serves as a guiding thread, illuminating the ways nature repeats its patterns across scale and time: in the branching of rivers and the veins of leaves, in the spiral of galaxies and the coiling of shells, in the cyclical turning of seasons and the rhythms of breath and heartbeat. 

Wittfooth’s inquiry follows a long lineage of artists, philosophers, and mystics who have turned to nature as both teacher and muse. Botticelli, in works like Primavera, used allegory to celebrate nature’s rebirth and transformation. Albrecht Dürer’s meticulous studies of plants and animals reveal a reverence for the intricate order of the living world. The Romantics sought the sublime in symbolic landscapes, while writers and philosophers such as Goethe, Thoreau, and Emerson recognized in nature an abiding wisdom—a mirror for the human soul and a reminder of our place in a larger web of being.

As Terence McKenna argued, nature is not inert or mute matter but an active, communicating field, brimming with pattern and purpose that we might perceive if we were to pay close attention and tune to its frequency. Other thinkers moved by direct experience and personal reflection, such as Alan Watts and Ram Dass, similarly described the sacred as immanent in the present moment, in the unbroken flow of life itself, and urged us to remember that “the universe is not outside of you, you are it.”

In past bodies of work, Wittfooth has often centered on humanity’s troubled relationship with nature: ecological crisis, exploitation, and the marginalization of the natural world. In Deus ex Terra, the artist shifts his focus in the direction of perennial themes: to reflect on its enduring and ancient rhythms that prevail despite our human tumult. In a time of deep cultural and ecological upheaval, these paintings offer an invitation to acknowledge, to remember, and perhaps to heal, by reconnecting with the timeless forces that have bound together life and a sublime order on this planet for millennia beyond our counting.

In this latest body of work, Wittfooth joins the chorus of artists, poets, and seekers throughout history who have set aside the human drama of the present moment to give the wonder of nature center stage, reminding us that the notion of the sacred is not a distant abstraction, but a living presence beneath our feet, in the air we breathe, and in the pattern of the seasons that turn endlessly around us, with or without our influence.

“Aspect of Earth” (oil on panel, 48” x 36”)

“Aspect of Summer” (oil on panel, 48” x 36”)

“Aspect of Winter” (oil on panel, 48” x 36”)

“Aspect of Water” (oil on panel, 48” x 36”)
 
Featured in Deus ex Terra is Wittfooth’s new series of eight smaller works (two seen below), titled Parallelism. The artist shares, “These works all share the same principle, which ties in directly with the title. Parallelism is defined as ‘the state of being parallel or corresponding in some way,’ and in these paintings, I'm exploring the synchronicities and parallel rhythms of forms found in the plethora of shapes, patterns, and palettes we find in the natural world.”

Deus ex Terra promises to be Wittfooth’s most cohesive and ambitious show to date. The artist has started sharing work-in-progress videos, providing a sneak peek into some of his new works featured in the upcoming show (including “Aspect of Summer,” “Aspect of Winter,” “Aspect of Water,” and “Aspect of Fire”).

“Parallelism 1 (Octopus)” (oil on wood, 24” in diameter)

“Parallelism 4 (Snail)” (oil on wood, 18” in diameter)

Open to the public and free to attend, Deus ex Terra is set to debut on Saturday, August 30th from 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm in the Main Gallery, alongside a three-artist exhibit, The Three Graces, in Gallery 2 featuring mini-solo shows from native Los Angeles artist Allison Reimold (titled The Blue Hour), Dutch artist Dewi Plass (titled On the Bright Side), and Kentucky-based artist and illustrator Kelsey Beckett (titled Sharp Edges). Plus, CHG’s Hidden Gems from the Studio II group exhibition is set to premiere in Gallery 3. All shows will be on view at CHG through October 4th.

About Martin Wittfooth:

Martin Wittfooth was born in Toronto, grew up in Finland, and was educated as an artist in Canada, and subsequently in New York City, where he earned his MFA in 2008 from the School of Visual Arts. He lived in New York until 2022, and now splits his time between Brockville, Ontario and Savannah, Georgia.

Wittfooth’s work has been exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide, including the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, The Bristol Museum, The Crocker Art Museum, Long Beach Museum of Art, the Laguna Art Museum, and La Halle Saint-Pierre in Paris, with solo exhibitions in New York City, Los Angeles, Copenhagen, Seattle, and Montreal. His paintings have also appeared in numerous publications (including Juxtapoz, The New York Times Art Review, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, American Art Collector, New Surrealism, and VICE) and graced the covers of New American Paintings, Hi-Fructose Magazine, Beautiful Bizarre Magazine, Chronogram, and American Artist Magazine. In addition, Wittfooth’s art has also been featured on numerous album covers, including Rival Sons’ 2019 double-GRAMMY®-nominated album Feral Roots and Protest the Hero’s 2020 album Palimpsest, which earned nominations for both Metal/Hard Album of the Year and Album Artwork of the Year at the 2021 JUNO Awards. 

Wittfooth has lectured at many institutions (including The New York Academy of Art, The School of Visual Arts, The Savannah College of Art and Design, the Fashion Institute of Technology, and the Museum of American Illustration in New York City) and is a recurring mentor in the prestigious Quarantine Events art program in Menorca, Spain.

About Corey Helford Gallery:

Established in 2006 by Jan Corey Helford and her husband, television producer/creator Bruce Helford (The Conners, Lopez vs. Lopez, Anger Management, The Drew Carey Show, and George Lopez), Corey Helford Gallery (CHG) has since evolved into one of the premier galleries of New Contemporary art. Its goal as an institution is to support the growth of artists, from the young and emerging to the well-known and internationally established. CHG represents a diverse collection of international artists, primarily influenced by today's pop culture and collectively encompassing style genres such as New Figurative Art, Pop Surrealism, Neo Pop, Graffiti, and Street Art. Located in downtown Los Angeles (571 S. Anderson St. Los Angeles, CA 90033) in a robust 12,000-square-foot building, CHG presents new exhibitions approximately every six weeks. The gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm. For more information, visit CoreyHelfordGallery.com 
 

All photos courtesy and copyright Martin Wittfooth, published with permission