The works in this exhibit reconsider the questions of art as décor, and décor as art. These four artists consider their creative output and its relevance to space, aesthetic, and taste. They perceive and appreciate the prospective place in which their artwork will reside. Like the pop artists, they remove familiar from its context and isloate the objects to provide contemporary interpretations and definitions of fine art.
Opening Friday, November 20th from 6pm-9pm.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Chiara Keeling studied sculpture at the Glasgow School of Art and Towson University, where she received her degree in 2004. Following college, she spent time in Spain doing cultural and lingual research. In 2006, she started her own clothing imprint, Sunrise from the Dead, which lasted for two years and marked the beginning of her experiments with fabric. She currently resides in Baltimore, where she walks dogs to support her art.
Allison Reimus’ paintings utilize color and pattern as a vehicle to explore the psychology of the domestic interior. A recent graduate of American University’s MFA program, Reimus’ work addresses elements of the decorative through the use of graphic and painterly techniques. Reimus’ is the 2009 recipient of the Crisp-Ellert Prize and has most recently exhibited at Nudashank Gallery in Baltimore. Future shows include Redux Contemporary Art Center in Charleston, SC in 2010. Reimus currently resides in Silver Spring.
M. Angelo Arnold is a sculptor who primarily works with furniture inspired, anthropomorphic forms. He received his MFA in Studio Arts/ Sculpture from The Ohio State University. Having been the recipient of several fellowships, grants and awards for his sculpture, he has exhibited locally and nationally and has had work reviewed in numerous periodicals. He has worked for the Columbus Museum of Art, The Ohio State University and Vermont Studio Center, as well as a visiting lecturer. Currently a Professor at Norwich University, Northfield, VT, he is an active board member for the TW Wood Gallery and resides in Montpelier, VT. Please visit www.angeloarnold.com for further information.
Shannon Donovan: My background in art history, in particular in European art and architecture of the Middle Ages through the 19th century, comes to bear on my artistic expression as I blend visual inspiration from these sources with the debris and decorative follies of 21st-century life. My installations combine unexpected interior and exterior objects with the aim of awakening their floral potential—discarded hubcaps bloom into wallflowers, doilies wrap themselves around utility covers, and wallpaper patterns sprout colorful porcelain growths. My work crosses boundaries of taste and expectation in rendering the functional decorative, and in challenging traditional ideas about the appropriate use and meaning of ceramics. By transforming unremarkable elements of the urban landscape and cultural detritus into domestic objects, I promote interplay between nature and artifice, foster a cycle of cross-pollination between outdoors and in, and champion the notion that exuberance is better than taste.
ABOUT THE CURATOR:
Philippa P.B. Hughes has established a reputation for creating inventive and collaborative environments in which people who would not normally have the opportunity to interact with each other or with contemporary art gather to experience art in alternative and stimulating ways.
Philippa founded The Pink Line Project with a mission to (1) inform and inspire the emerging art collector, and (2) foster intellectual and artistic innovation fueled by the transformative power of art.
