When you see Drew Tyndell’s work and learn about his background and experience, it all makes perfect sense. The Portland-based artist grew up with an architect father, pursued graphic design in college, and previously set up a motion design studio in Atlanta. In his work, this translates to geometric wood assemblages. They’re like architectural/fine art amalgams that walk the line between sculpture and painting, using color and collage to create depth and space. You can even see how the shapes could be animated to move like puzzle pieces on a screen, similar to the looping animation work for which he’s also known.
He used the same basic principles of his design — shapes and collage — to create a contour drawing piece for Dolby®, but drawing upon music as his guide. “I really wanted my piece to respond to sound as much as possible. I wanted to use music to inspire the mark making in order to create shapes I wouldn’t normally draw,” Tyndell explains. So while listening to a combination of classical music and Philip Glass’s “weird looping pieces from the '70s,” he created the shapes, lines, and counterforms blindly, then pieced them together for the mural. “I can’t say I've ever really shut my eyes and tried to listen to music as carefully as I did for this project. It was fun to bring that into how I create shape.... this project inspired me to create more organic shapes. My work is normally much more geometric. After I finished this project, I have been much more interested in mixing in more irregular shapes into my work.”
Across all mediums, and all kinds of shapes, his aesthetic remains modern, “with some handmade qualities creeping in,” Tyndell adds. Even when technology helps, it look that way. “I love the simplicity of drawing on the computer.... It streamlines my process in a major way.”