<< BACK TO JOURNAL

NOMA GALLERY is proud to present its first solo show by TPG #3 artist Christine Kesler. “in a world where you are possible” features an installation where the artist intersects and collides paintings, drawings and sculptures as well as a new video piece.  TONIGHT there is a closing reception (though the show has been extended a week so you can still see it!) and it should be a good time.

An evening of Sounds and Words:

Drawing on the influence of poetry in Christine’s work the gallery put together an evening of readings and music. Kevin Killian will read from his new book ‘Impossible Princess’ (City Lights), Christine Choi will be reading portions from her work ‘Swollen Animals Dream: Fifteen Love Letters’ accompanied by projections and a hacked “lyre”, Christine Kesler will be reading some recent poetry and there will be a music performance by James Devane.

TPG #5 artist Davin Youngs shows a new collection of photos in Chicago in February.  Davin’s photos are wonderfully romantic, tactile, and beautiful. Should be a good show.

Photographs signify participation. They are visual representations of the ways in which space and relationships are navigated and/or participated in. WE is artist Davin Young’s expression of desire for thorough, deep and unique participation in the world and with those around him. This participation can span from isolation to intimacy.

Created without special lenses or digital editing, these images were achieved by somewhat simple (or complicated?) participation. Davin was close enough to capture and removed enough to observe. They are meant to share unique moments, but also serve as an invitation for you to participate, too. The hope is that together WE can collectively observe, enjoy and create.

DETAILS:
February 5 – February 27 2010
Opening Reception: February 5  7-11pm

Fill in the Blank Gallery
5038 N. Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60625
773.878.1750
info@fillintheblankgallery.com

I feel like the 2000′s were one big identity crisis.  No one even knew what to call these years.  Sure, we all settled into two thousand and .. but I think we’re going feel much better now that we’ve got 90 years of twenty-whatevers. It was all a bit of a roller coaster ride.  Bubble upon bubble were destined to pop, the towers fell, we felt waves of fear and unity and division, our country engaged in two wars, and even our (over)confidence in the planet was shaken.  Yet now somehow it seems like things are slowing down. I don’t doubt we’ll climb our way out of our current economy, but I think it’s going to be slow and steady.  We’ve just been biding our time, waiting for this sense of settling down.

My newphew on Christmas morning, patiently waiting for his one last present (a bike!) to be brought out.  I love the patience and pleasurable anticipation on his face.  That’s what the 2000′s sort of felt like to me.

Maybe it’s just personal. Oliver and I turn a decade older just before the turn of each decade.  We spent the 2000′s in our 20′s: finishing school, lots of different jobs, figuring out what we want to do with ourselves.  Turning thirty this year felt big.  But now we’ve at least got a sense of what we’re going to pursue.  We’re trying to become real adults and buy a house.  Last year nothing worked out on that front.  This year the first house we’ve put an offer on – it’s address is 2010! Good omen?  Maybe.  I’ll tell you in three days.

The Present Group in the 2000′s was young.  Though our idea was novel, we struggled to be noticed.  Now we’ve got three years of works behind us, we’ve met and worked with lots of really amazing people.  And we’re very happy to report that this past year, for the first time, we broke even.  We’ve had a steady rate of growth, though our subscriber numbers don’t fully show it.  We’ve also gotten better at running the business: creating projects we can afford without sacrificing integrity, creativity, or ingenuity.  So, our big goal for this year is to continue on the same trend that we’ve been on.  Because if we do, this year we’ll be in the black enough to give one of us a very small paycheck.  That means that this project might just work out in the end.  That’s what we’ve been waiting for.

I was listening to the Phases of the Moon interview and heard about your project about the value of art.  Although I don’t know anything about the nature of the project I didn’t want that to stop me from offering a few lines:

One of my favorite novels tells of a man who stopped believing in the world and disappeared.  Art is that vanishing.  A new space testifying to the unseen, and an invitation.

Back when we did the E|AB fair in New York, our next door table neighbors were Purgatory Pie Press. After the show was over, we traded a set of State of the Arts posters for a subscription to their postcards. They work with different artists and poets and letterpress an edition of postcards each month. We just received another in the mail yesterday, and it is one of my favorites. Here are the highlights:

Nice =New by Dikko Faust (one of the owners of PPP)

PORNTOUM by Marc Nasdor: the lastest installment.  Click on the image to see the whole card.

While working on this post, I started thinking about how postcards are a great little medium, especially for poets or artists who sortof work like poets.  Here are two examples of artists who send out postcards as part of their practice. You can sign up for free postcards on either site.

Andrew Venell sends out postcards irregularly.

Buck Downs has been sending out poems on postcards since 1993.