In “Downforce,” Michael Kagan Channels the Aerodynamics of F1 Through Collage

On March 21, Pace Prints will open a solo exhibition of 16 new pieces by Michael Kagan. Though the Brooklyn-based fine artist has become known for kinetic compositions born from bold brush strokes, this show—aptly entirely “Downforce”—features Formula One-inspired collage works on panel. None of the gravity behind Kagan’s painted works has been lost in the shift between mediums, and the subject matter—ranging from a depiction of Lewis Hamilton after his first Grand Prix win to Fernando Alonso and Charles Leclerc’s collision at the Belgian Grand Prix—drives the same emotional intensity.

For more than two years, Kagan worked with the team of printers at Pace Prints on a printmaking system that could channel his signature style of gestural painting. “It was an organic process [of collaboration] that reminded me of the early days of painting solo in the studio. Experimenting and trying out different techniques to achieve a visual goal that I could see in my head,” Kagan tells Surface about the path toward the multi-process printmaking technique.

They began by assembling a sprawling paper archive of his squeegee and brush strokes. Each paper functioned, in essence, as a monoprint. “As we built this paper archive we experimented with double printing, ghosting, and different colors,” he says. “Each monoprint had a specific goal or objective when making it. Once hundreds of sheets were printed over months, we then had what we needed to start selecting sheets and cutting and tearing them to create the images.” As he notes, the paper layering in the collages is very similar to how he interweaves brushstrokes in paintings.

Conversely, Kagan found that color and design choices that he made at the Pace Prints studio found their way into his painted works in his Brooklyn studio. “It acted as a good reminder to always be pushing in a new direction and to trust the process,” he adds.