June 14, 2024
Feels like home. (And this skateboard might be a crime.)
Hi.
I returned to New Orleans late Tuesday night, so it was a bit of a cram this week. Exhibitions close quickly around here; please always feel free to reach out and let me know what’s up. And thank you to Maxx, Samantha, and Cole for making time and sharing your work (and the work of others) these past couple of days.
On View
COMFORT (An LGBTQ group show) at Staple Goods
This show is so tender and full of touching moments. It was curated by Maxx Sizeler, who invited artists to respond to the question, “What brings you COMFORT as an LGBTQ community person?”
It’s a bold curatorial move to let artists choose work for a group show. What’s at risk is cohesion, harmony, and evident common denominators.
I love Genevieve McKeown’s perfect-imperfect painted frames, the quiet weirdness of Susan Bower’s ceramics, and other human details. I wanted to stay longer than I could…I was trying to figure something out something before I left…
As I was opening the door to leave, I figured out what it was. The works in the show share a vocabulary of home. Bottle and dishes, domestic frames, photographs that feel familiar, vulnerable, embroidery, wood inlay– The way the show is hung too felt home-like more than gallery-like. Even the problematic wall space above the shelf, the work hung there fit perfectly, fit the tone: safety and comfort.
The theme of the show is a stroke of brilliance. We know the private is political, but we also know that everyone needs a rest from fight and vigilance in order to retain compassion and softness. The art in this show has its guard down and all the work feels right at home.
Studio Visit: H.Cole Wiley
It’s like I don’t even have the vocabulary to talk about this ubernerdy studio visit. So I’ll start with the skateboard I spotted across the room. Don’t try this at home.
I wondered if it was a sculptural lark, but no.“Fluffy,” a welded steel skateboard, is in fact skateable (though not trickable).
As an undergrad, Cole built the skateboard from a piece of a fellow-student’s unfinished sculpture. It’s the size of a standard board, but has “massive weight (13.5 lbs) so it cruses comfy like a +40 inch longboard without any flex!” The grip is not tape but “MIG” welded texture. Bruh.
The studio is orderly but densely packed. Large 2-D works hang along the wall. HIs work is tirelessly curious, intrepid, and yeah, nerdy.
Cole demonstrated his predictive drawing program–which mimics his drawing style. We saw his program draw the International Space Station in his “style.” Then, he used the robot he built to draw the predictive drawing with India ink.
I cannot, without studying for a couple hours first, pass a test on the intricacies of the machine or the program, but the robot at work was superfun to watch and wasn’t some pristine activity, but an inky trial and…not error but outcome.
Samantha Combs Down the Drain at Good Children
Would anyone like to meet up and sit in front of this piece for an hour? That’s a real question. I’m serious. Comment, text, or DM @thevillagedisco .
More to come about Samantha’s work.
Links Galore
COMFORT (An LGBTQ group show) at Staple Goods Gallery, curated by Maxx Sizeler
Studio Visit: H. Cole Wiley
Samantha Combs Down the Drain at Good Children Gallery
STILL ON VIEW (SEE PREVIOUS POSTS)
You Can’t Hide The Sun, Ron Bechet and Hannah Chalew at Other Plans Gallery
Jon Gott, Foreign Correspondent at Sibyl Gallery CLOSES JUNE 30
Jasmine Best, Screened In at Antenna Gallery. CLOSES JUNE 23
Angel Perdomo and Collectiva Manos adentro, afuera: outside-and-in at Antenna. CLOSES JUNE 23
Tiffany Smith, Back Home at 1019 Gallery, ARTIST TALK JUNE 6 -7 pm. SHOW CLOSES JUNE 29