Human Brevity opening

Opening night! A great group came out to the Jersey shore yesterday to see our show, curated by ALE Curators (a collaboration of Liz Misitano, Elena Rodz and myself).

On view through Sept. 27th, 3-7pm Saturdays and Sundays.
More info at facebook.com/TheALECurators

Human Brevity — opening Saturday Sept. 6

I am excited to announce that I have co-curated a show along with Elizabeth Misitano and Elena Rodz called Human Brevity, opening September 6th from 7-9pm at The Collective Art Tank in Asbury Park, NJ. The three of us had discussed curating a show together and out of many ideas, we decided on Human Brevity as the most intriguing and relevant. 

Below is an excerpt from our press release. Everyone is welcome to join us at the opening. All of the work shown will be available for purchase. 

ALE Curators is pleased to present Human Brevity: Contemplating Longevity in a World of Internet Memes, a group exhibition on view at The Collective Art Tank in Asbury Park, NJ from September 6 through September 27, 2014.

In the age of instantaneous messaging, constant updates on news feeds, disposable anything and everything, lives broken down into shorter and shorter segments, catering to our waning attention spans - the works in Human Brevity question whether the soul or the internet is the path to immortality.

Technology races forward, leaving the monuments of industrialization to wither as ironic shrines to greatness. Andrea Williams reinvigorates these ruins in her graphic prints. Her subject matter, the now defunct factories of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, ruminates on a geriatric America, its industrial strength like the atrophied muscles of an aging bodybuilder. In a similar vein, her newest series explores irregularities in the body. Her boldly colored linoleum prints ponder our physicality and its complex relationship as both protector and jailer of the soul.

...

Participating Artists:

Charis Carmichael Braun, Diana Corvelle, L.E. Doughtie, Benjamin Martins, Quentin McCaffrey, Michael Meadors, Liz Misitano, Kyrre Mogster, Elena Rodz, Rabecca Signoriello, Andrea M. Williams, Shawn Yu 

Opening September 6^th at The Collective Art Tank, 529 Bangs Ave, Asbury Park, New Jersey 07712

On view Saturdays and Sundays 3-7pm, and by appointment, through September 27^th

Contact:

ALE.Curators@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/TheALECurators

Creating The Heart

Since learning how to make linocuts, I have begun developing a new body of work of prints and sculptures. It is about the interior space of the body, its function and fragility. These images stem from some medical issues I went through last year that made me think hard about the functioning of the body and its inevitable deterioration.

This work is experimental for me in many ways. I am carving and printing monotypes using multiple plates/colors to create many layers. I am using bold colors in a break from my usual palette. The mark-making is very satisfying; the physical act of carving an image is very different from painting. In the sculptures, I am building up and carving down into objects that are at once amorphous and defined.

I am representing something from inside that I know is there but cannot see, which in itself is a break from how I learned to make art.. through observation. I have been asking myself many questions.. how do we measure what we cannot see? How do we fight or accept the frailty of the body? How do we translate trauma?

Relief printing

I took a fantastic class yesterday on relief printing taught by Justin Sanz at the Blackburn printshop in NYC. Relief prints are made by using sharp tools to cut into the surface of a block, generally wood or linoleum. When the surface of the block is inked and printed, the cuts print white/blank. The result is a graphic, striking image.

I'm definitely going to continue experimenting with relief printing. The physicality of carving and cutting feels very sculptural, in a reductive way of course. I feel a similar thread to my monotypes since I frequently work in a reductive method where I reveal an image from a dark field of ink.

Check out my first attempt at linocut..

Tribeca Ball and Open Studios

I recently did lithography printmaking demonstrations at two events hosted by my alma mater, the New York Academy of Art: Tribeca Ball and Open Studios. Tribeca Ball is an annual fundraiser to fund the school's scholarships and programs. Open Studios is a chance for anyone interested in the school to check out the fantastic work being created by students and alumni.

The Academy's printmaking facility enables students to work in Intaglio, Lithography, Relief, and Monotype printmaking. I fell in love with printmaking, particularly Lithography and Monotype, when I was studying there.

At the events last week, I met many patrons and artists. I demonstrated the process of printing a lithograph from the rolling up the plate, to working the press, and registering and pulling a print.

 Rolling up the plate with ink

 Preparing to print

Lowering the pressure bar

A successful print on the press 

I had quite a crowd at Open Studios

The reveal!