Abstraction, Illusionism, Realism, and Reality:
Abstraction:
We usually think of abstraction in terms that are compared against what we understand as "real" looking, that is paintings more or less accurate in their descriptions of material objects, places or things. Some abstract paintings such as Fauvism, Expressionism, or Classic Cubism also depict physical or material things, however, their images have been "abstracted" toward expressing their individual agendas. Others such as those of Kandinsky, Mondrian, or Malevich do not. In their paintings, we see that if the subject matter of things found in the real world are depicted in some way, they are either vastly obscured or replaced by the "intangible realities" of concept or idea. These types of abstraction can also be typified as being either what is called "organicist," suggesting a connection with nature, or "mechanicist" with implications identified more with thought, logic, and the literal. Kandinsky, especially his earlier work, is usually identified with the former while Mondrian and Malevich with the latter.
Organicist abstraction is seen as evolving into a more "expressionistic" and "painterly" form, as found in Abstract Expressionism, that is, with its surface made of a materiality or physical paint while mechanicist abstraction is seen as an evolving into a reduction of visual elements; what eventually led to what's called Minimalism. While I see mechanicist abstraction such as Malevich's "Suprematist Composition; White on White" of 1918 as leading to a dead end, I see Kandinsky's approach being neither about surface, materialism, or flatness, but is typified more with the inclusion of "object space," "interspace" as a "place," as well as the effect of objects floating or moving within a more dynamic pictorial composition. As Frank Stella has said, volume and mass need to be re-discovered, re-invented, or even re-born.
I identify my interest in abstraction more with Kandinsky even though I include geometry as a structural element. This is because Nature, both human-nature and nature-nature, are central to my thesis. Additionally, as his discourse indicates, Kandinsky's works have a very humanistic element, i.e., one using subjective perception in what he calls "inner necessity." These paintings incorporate in addition to object-space and inter-space, motion and time. These things are missing in Malevich's work and finally concludes into "flatness" that is currently referred to as "literal-ness."
Illusionism:
Illusionism is the primary element that sets "realism" apart from "abstraction." It's what gives volume and mass to depicted objects. Spatial depth is also (not solely) enhanced by illusionism, especially by what is called "aerial" or "atmospheric" perspective. Actually the perception of any pictorial description is enhanced greatly with a quality of Reality when illusionism is employed; that illusionism affects perception more than any other element in the pictorial dictionary. This is the primary reason I consider "Perception" my motive for using illusionism in my paintings. I use what affects perception the most in addressing the connection between "abstraction," "realism," and "reality."
Realism:
Again, realism as it pertains to painting, is greatly enhanced by illusionism, giving everything depicted a quality that goes beyond description alone. In fact, illusionism is the primary quality that gives a "reality" to "realism."
Reality:
Seeing is believing. Reality is also about perception. We know that what we see is reality in every sense of the word. Reality is perception and perception, as far as painting is concerned, is most affected by illusionism,
In connecting abstraction with reality, I use illusionism, i.e., optical illusions; what I call "visual effects" or "visual phenomena." Instead of applying these illusions of reality to realism, I use these effects within the context of abstraction to make a connection of realism and non-objective abstraction. Instead of flattening both object-space and pictorial space, I use illusionism to create a reality that goes beyond depiction or description of physical reality, challenging how and what we use to define reality, accommodating realism and non-objective abstraction.