On a purely visual level — looking at color, form, texture, materials — Todd Siler’s paintings, currently on display at the Museum of Outdoor Arts, are an astonishing array of eye-pleasing artworks. That is a good way to start talking about them — before you begin thinking more deeply about what they mean. They are hyper-colorful, rendered in expressive reds, golds, greens and pinks. Siler lets these exaggerated hues crash into, over and around each other. Sometimes they appear like murky clouds caught in a brilliant sunset. At other times, they look like fire that has been captured mid-flame. The artist Todd Siler. (Provided by the Museum of Outdoor Arts) At their boldest, they take on an explosive aura, as if they are documenting the scene of two planets colliding in some mythical stratosphere and releasing all of the light and force that come with major celestial events. Yes, they have that much energy. But there is also something very down-to-earth about them. They have warm and inviting textures that make you want to touch and feel them as objects. That surface appeal starts with the paint itself, which is layered on canvases using Siler’s custom-developed painting/printing process (that is actually patented), but then heightened by the addition of other materials — like paper or fabric — that are incorporated, collage-style, onto the canvases. The works are busy, clunky and rough, almost to the point of being three-dimensional objects rather than the usual flat objects we think of when we use the word “painting.” And, adding to their attention-seeking allure, they are big, sometimes enormous. One work, titled “Ascension,” is 15 feet tall and 58 feet wide — as long as a bowling alley. Like the other paintings in the show, it is unframed and simply tacked up to the gallery’s curving walls with small nails. As for thinking about Siler’s paintings, that can be both complicated and simple. On the less-complex side, you might consider them pictures of time itself, though time — infinite, evolving, difficult to stop — is itself complex. How do you capture all of it in a single work of art, no matter how large you make it? Impossible. But Siler boldy goes there, because he believes that time gives meaning to every object and being in the universe. “Time connects all living things, influencing our thoughts, feelings, actions and behaviors. This phenomenon links everyone’s life from cradle to grave,” Siler posits in the exhibition’s wall text. There is a scientific aspect to this way of seeing and presenting the world, and that connects with the painter’s background as both a researcher and an artist. He holds a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies in Psychology and Art from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is also reflected in the subjects he paints, which can have titles that intimidate most people without advanced degrees from MIT. Consider this one: “Creative Consciousness: Neuro-Impressions of Human Creativity.” Or the piece titled: “Envisioning A Cornucopia of Nanomaterials (1 to 100nm) on the Horizon, Designing Building from Bottom Up to Top Down.” Or this one: “Neural Fragments: Gone With The Wings of Human Nervous Systems.” It might be easiest to break these works down into simple abstractions. For example, the “neural fragments” in this particular painting appear to be a free-wheeling take on the spindly, spider-like nerve endings that exist in human bodies. These nerves seem to be caught in motion, in the act of doing their job of emitting energy signals to other parts of the body that control how we move or think. (Siler explained in a follow-up email to me that they were, in fact, inspired by slides of human neural tissue altered with a dye to illuminate their skeletal structure.) But the actual painting, which is more like 12 feet tall and 3 feet wide, shows how the artist in Siler turns these microscopic materials into large-scale panoramas, and uses them to talk about richer ideas surrounding human and planetary conditions. “Metaphorming Time” continues through Feb. 13 at the Museum of Outdoor Arts. (Provided by the Museum of Outdoor Arts) At this scale, we start to recognize the human body as a system, and we consider how that system exists in a larger environment — both the body itself and the world around it. And we consider how these mechanisms have evolved over time, how they have become interconnected, how they have survived both subtle change and catastrophe, and how they must face the future together. This exaggerated landscape of the tiny nervous system makes us consider the whole universe and the challenges ahead as technology progresses, as the environment deteriorates, as we endeavor to create beauty while withstanding global stress. Siler is a big thinker, using a combination of metaphor and paint to make his case. The other works in this show go in their own directions. Some are more current and event-driven, like “Envisioning The Green Renewable Energies Revolution,” which connects to a trendy topic. Others reach deeper, like that aforementioned 58-foot-long work, which is titled ”Ascension” and considers the whole of 360,000 years of human evolution. In this exhibition titled “Metaphorming Time,” there are also books, photos, prints, sculptures and drawings that provide examples and insight into Siler’s career output. There is an abundance of wall text that offers visitors deeper explanations of Siler’s process and the vocabulary he has developed to talk about his work. Todd Siler sometimes incorporates text into his multi-media works. (Provided by the Museum of Outdoor Arts) Experiencing “Metaphorming Time” is something of a commitment. A visitor does have to see (and appreciate) all of that overwhelming color and generosity of canvas size for a moment before consuming the text and really digging into Siler’s intentions. But it is rewarding in that way an art show can be when big art meets deep thought. One necessary note: This offering from the Museum of Outdoor Arts is actually located in a large indoor space. It’s a warm environment in every way. IF YOU GO “Metaphorming Time” continues through Feb. 13 at the Museum of Outdoor Arts, 6363 S. Fiddler’s Green Circle, Greenwood Village. It’s free. Info: 303-806-0444 or moaonline.org. ...read more read less