Merrick’s paintings are built as much as they are painted, constructed with the precision and material sensitivity of a seasoned carpenter, which he is, in fact. His measured and deliberate action reveals a story that is seen in the accident of paint and visible movement within a strict geometry. The process is like divination. Are they openings, portals, or a part of the architecture? We can step into these quiet spaces. 

 

These works are presented in a gallery, but also in a theater, a house of narrative. What is their story and how do we see them? The paintings are filled with chance and action, yet pristinely neutral. This is rare and beautiful in art. An Eidolon is a phantom or a fleeting image of an ideal. Merrick says “I am inspired by faded memories, half understood moods, images and ideas seen out of the corner of one’s eye”.