Art in the Open 2014

AiO is a juried art event celebrating the way artists interact with their urban environment. The selected group of artists are invited to take their studio practice outside to produce work in the open, create a temporary presentation, and interact with visitors. It took place May 16-18 along the Schuylkill Banks. This was the second time I participated. I made spray paintings on canvas mimicking natural patterns and textures with an unnatural medium, then installed them on an existing free-standing wall that was once the base of a bridge. My goal was to accent the wall with the size, color, and patterns of the paintings in order to have the wall itself become an art object.

Installation shot, exhibition at University City Arts League

94X

A couple of months after There Is No was shown with the Juvenile In Justice exhibition, I revisited the themes found in the original 94 pieces. I made six new paintings that reflect my thoughts about this body of work while taking into account my growth as a painter.

Juvenile In Justice

Photo by Richard Ross

There Is No, is exhibited in the Juvenile In Justice exhibition at the Crane Arts on view November 8 - December 12. 

There Is No is a series of ninety-four paintings intended to address urban violence and the experience of loss. It began as a Mural Arts Program project called The Ninety-Four Effect which was based around a study that concluded that for every victim of urban homicide, ninety-four people are directly affected. Having lost a friend to homicide in 2005, I myself am one of those ninety-four, and so, in July 2012, I led workshops at the Covenant House, a shelter facility for homeless youth located in Kensington. With the input of the young people I worked with, and drawing from my own experience, I developed imagery and vocabulary that approximates the experience of devastation and loss. I made ninety-four paintings to represent the ninety-four people affected by one death. Each painting approaches the same subject from a different angle, so together it becomes recognizable, while remaining freshly and frustratingly elusive. 

Click here to read my interview with the InLiquid Blog

Juvenile In Justice is curated by Julien Robson and Rachel Zimmerman and features the work of photographer Richard Ross and ceramicist Roberto Lugo and painter Mat Tomezsko, on view at the Crane Arts from November 8 to December 12, 2013. 

Click here for more views of the installation

Reviews for Juvenile In Justice:

Newsworks

philly.com
The Artblog
The Inquirer
Knight Arts
Mother Jones

If you are interested in purchasing any piece from There Is No,
click here
A percentage of the proceeds will be donated to the Covenant House
and will help support the Youth Criminal Record Expungement Clinic on Dec. 3.

There Is No

There Is No is a series of 94 paintings addressing homicide in Philadelphia.  It is based on the idea called The Ninety-Four Effect which estimates that for every one person murdered, there are 94 people directly affected. Each painting, then, represents one of 94 people affected by one death. This project was a collaboration with the Mural Arts Program and the Covenant House in Kensington where I worked with young people to create the imagery and vocabulary that make up these paintings. The series does not yet have a home.  Here is a link to the blog where you can view the series in its entirety.

Thank You Have A Nice Day

Here We Are On Lonely Ass American Street

Happier and Happier

Press for Happier and Happier:

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Curbed Philly

Philly Side Arts