"A Cut Above" closing date extended to July 15...

Due to popular demand "A Cut Above: 12 Paper Masters" runs for another three bonus weeks at the Christopher Henry Gallery.  Recent show reviews can be found here: Felt and Wire,  Huffington Post, and Strictly Paper. For a complete show preview click here to view the exhibition catalogue. A celebration and closing party at the gallery will take place on  Thursday, July 12, from 6 to 9 pm. All welcome. Please RSVP to diana@dianaewer.com.

First floor gallery installation shot

Second floor gallery installation shot (close up)

Second floor gallery installation shot

Chris Gilmour shapes British legend entirely out of cardboard boxes

Chris Gilmour, The Triumph of Good and Evil, 2011, Cardboard and glue, Life-size Photo credit: Photo Mattias

The Triumph Of Good And Evil by the UK born sculptor, Chris Gilmour, is made entirely out of corrugated cardboard.  A recent work, he designed the 13ft life-sized St George and the dragon sculpture from discarded boxes he found in the streets that shopkeepers had left out for recycling in his home town of Udine, North Italy.  The artist comments, ‘The piece took two months to make and is based on a study of classical statues, typically made in bronze .... The work is a consideration of the idea of polarising, or simplifying the concept of right and wrong and the idea that ‘evil’ can be defeated by heroic combat'. 

Chris Gilmour received his BA from the University of the West of England, Bristol and studied at South Trafford College, Manchester. He has exhibited his work internationally since 1998 and has had recent solo shows in Italy and the United States.  He received Italy’s Premio Cairo award in 2007.  He was also included in Slash: Paper Under the Knife at the Museum of Art and Design, NY. His work can be found in numerous private and public collections including the Zabludowicz Collection, UK. This sculpture is a central component of the exhibition, A Cut Above: 12 Paper Masters that opens at the Christopher Henry Gallery on May 10 and runs until June 24. 


Recent press links: METRO, The Daily Telegraph, and Yahoo.

Jaq Belcher: Paper Meditations

My works are created using a single sheet of paper, a pencil and an Exacto knife.

Through this work I explore aspects of consciousness and alternative states of being. The focus is on the process of reduction and repetition, and derives from musings on the manipulation of matter. This practice allows and requires stillness. The process hones concentration and therefore the power of the mind through focus.

The exploration of these ideas began taking a visual direction as I was pondering the beauty of a single expanse of white paper. How can one enhance such a simple and beautiful void? And so the process of reduction was born with the resulting works being quietly patterned and complex. They are, a proclamation if you will, to the power of silence, and testify to the practice of 'being' in the moment and completely 'present'.

 The work is created in, and intended for natural light, which allows the spectrum of white light to be visible through reflection and angles of the paper. The pieces draw on the presence of the viewer and the inner self that stands before each piece. I am inspired by a wide pool of references, from eastern and western meditation  practices, inner alchemy, esoteric philosphy and the study of sacred geometry.

Artwork and statement by Jaq Belcher

Jaq Belcher, Access Point, 2012, Hand cut paper, 5,071 cuts

 

Jaq Belcher, Access Point, 2012, (detail)

Jaq Belcher, Form is Empty, 2011, Hand cut paper, 5,823 cuts

Doug Beube: Breaking the Codex

Doug Beube, Masked Vocabulary, 2011, Altered dictionary and book, metal, marble and wood

Doug Beube, Partition, 2006, Altered books

Doug Beube, Interlocutors, 1996, Altered books

My work explores the book itself, a seemingly antiquated technology that is still purposeful in a digital age. The codex, which literally means a block of wood in Latin, is undeviating in its essential form; its fixity is antithetical to the capabilities of the computer to function on a synergetic/simultaneous plane. Although the codex, compared to computers, is undeniably limited in its capacity to store, perpetuate, generate and recreate information, I accept these boundaries. (I’m not referring to the paginated works of Artists’ Books; this is an entirely different category that has flourished with various software programs; Artists Books remain an open-ended medium.) I apply quasi-software functions such as cutting, pasting and hidden text (utilized in the bookwork Amendment and Border Crossing), for example, onto an analogue system; it does not work it cannot. The codex is intractable as a technology; you read linearly from beginning to end. It is essentially inflexible. That is its built-in personality flaw; that is its elegance.

I began changing the books structure in 1979 by pushing the physical properties of the book, piercing, gouging and excavating it, as if it were a thrilling, previously undiscovered site in an archeological dig. As an artist my goal is to transform how a book functions outside a linear read for an outdated technology, the codex, becomes something that is new and visually meaningful.

My sculptures primarily use discarded and organic materials, such as books for example, which the viewer will recognize for their utilitarian quality. On occasion I will purchase a book or fabricate materials for a specific idea, such as the steel rod and wooden leg in The Portable Library. The viewer visually engages with the re-contextualized object, which might otherwise have gone unnoticed in its customary setting, and participates in its transformation through a critique or dialogue. To visually engage with the object as a phenomenological experience, is my objective; beyond concept, above references, each piece explores the reciprocity between meaning and structure as comprehended subliminally through the senses.

Artwork and statement by Doug Beube

I work with a pair of scissors and the precision of a surgeon to transform paper into intricately detailed designs and delicate, almost lace-like patterns.  Inspired by Matsuo Basho’s haiku and the writings of Charles Baudelaire and Voltaire, I extract passages and transform them into meticulous works of art that appear to be laser cut.  I am also inspired by nature, fantasy and elements of my native Japanese culture.  I mix traditional and modern styles to produce a unique world of images, one that resonates with wonder, ethereal beauty and magnificent detail.

Artwork and statement by Hina Aoyama

Hina Aoyama, Papillon I, 2012, Cut paper with scissors

Hina Aoyama, Papillon II, 2012, Cut paper with scissors

Opening this May at the Christopher Henry Gallery, NYC, the exhibition "A Cut Above: 12 Paper Masters" will pay homage to a group of international established and emerging artists working with cut paper and books.

Exhibiting artists include: Hina Aoyama, Jaq Belcher, Doug Beube, Zoe Bradley, Brian Dettmer, Danielle Durchslag, Adam Fowler, Chris Gilmour, Dylan Graham, Guy Laramée, Pablo Lehmann and Thomas Witte.

Show dates: May 10 - July 15,  2012
Opening night: Thursday, May 10, 6 - 9 pm
Closing party: Thursday, July 12, 6 - 9 pm

Dylan Graham, The Stars Never Lie But The Astrologs Lie About The Stars, 2009, Hand Cut Archival Paper

Brian Dettmer, Standard American, 2008, Altered Set of Vintage Encyclopedias, 
Image Courtesy of Kinz and Tillou Fine Art

Daniella Durchslag, Baby IV, 2010, Cut Papers