WINDOWS grab my attention. There are scores upon scores of these. One on top of another on top of another on top of another.

Some are lit, some are dark. “Light on. Lights off,” David Tay, 36, explains as he reaches out to colour one.

Tay’s collection of some 20 pieces of art work are on display at a solo exhibition entitled “Buildings and Trees” at Reka Art Space in Kelana Jaya.

An artist with a learning disability, Tay’s work may look childlike at a glance. But you would soon see that it takes some effort, and time, to create each piece. And consistency gives it its value.

Inspired by a trip to New York some years back, Tay creates abstract images of the tall buildings and trees imprinted in his memory. In this exhibition he presents a series of landscapes created on strong vertical and horizontal grids.

We see his work from 2005 to the present. While the earlier pieces are simpler and uncluttered, the ones produced last year are densely packed and meticulous in detail.

There is a sense of intensity or maybe obsessiveness in the way he accomplishes his work. His palette is limited. Working with charcoal sticks, he uses only white, black, brown and brick red. Repetitive markings to colour a tiny area lends texture while various tones of a single colour offers depth.

Black, for instance, is employed in about four different tones. Tay never confuses one tone with another. The consistency gives the piece an interesting edge.

Shadows are also big on his easel. Tree trunks and even stones have shadows from a 4pm sun. But sometimes the shadows do not follow through. They disappear behind a tree.

Through his work, we see how he processes and interprets the world around him.



Buildings and Trees ends Feb 16. Reka Art Space is located at GL29 Block C, Kelana Square, 17 Jalan SS7/26, Kelana Jaya. Call 03-78805982.