Mark DeLong's Playful Abstractions Hit Cooper Cole Gallery (PHOTOS)

Sometimes the phrase "blurring the line between abstraction and representation" gets thrown around so much in art talk that it starts to lose its magic. Yet Canadian artist Mark DeLong's playful color fields show just how far the imagination can take a painting that refuses to define itself.

DeLong paints abstract color-based works that are both monumental and a bit childlike. With titles like "The Beat Broke in Through the Window and Stole My Poem about the Shelf" and "Ducks Crossing Oppenheimer", the artist invites us to look for a narrative in works that would normally be thought of as pure abstraction. With each search for a story we are navigating through DeLong's acrylic jungle, and it can be easy to get lost. And yet, like all good artists, DeLong continues to explore the difficult relationship between abstraction and representation. We're curious to see what he'll tackle next.

Mark DeLong's first exhibition at Cooper Cole Gallery in Toronto will be on view until April 22.

Do you think his works speak to you or do the titles only serve to confuse? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.