Contemporary art talent - chosen so you don't have to...

Ned Vena

Practice: painting

Click image to start slideshow of this artist's work ?

Already lauded in his native US and increasingly so in Europe, Ned Vena seems to have fast-tracked his way into major galleries following acclaimed 2008 solo shows in New York and Berlin. And it's not hard to see why.

Drawing elegantly on influences such as Frank Stella's early Black Paintings, Vena's extension of the minimalist discourse is, in fact, heavily process-oriented, his recent output comprising enamel monochromes, acid-etched mirror and complex vinyl and rubber stencilling on surfaces such as linen and aluminium.

For the moment at least, Vena looks set to fulfil his early promise, creating work that not only subtly diversifies with each new showing, but quite simply keeps getting better.