
Exhibition Review ‘Direction / Instruction’ at Paradigm Gallery
‘Direction / Instruction’ is a traveling group exhibition boasting an outstanding lineup of artists.
Having already enjoyed successful stops in Denver at Svperordinary and at CAVE Gallery, Venice Beach, Cali, ‘Direction / Instruction’ is currently on expo thru September 17th at Paradigm Gallery in Philadelphia.
Loosely linked these are artists that take survey of urban contemporary culture thru what you might call non-norm modes and materials. Color, composition and geometric patterns and shape have dominant roles in this exhibition. Most of these artists are also active makers on the street, but none of what is shown here has the telltale signs of what is commonly thought of when thinking about the ‘Street Art’ phrase or genre. This show has lots of abstraction and little straight representation, for example.
‘Direction / Instruction‘ is curated by Amsterdam based Andenken Gallery owner, Hyland Mather, who is also one of the contributing artists known sometimes by his artist nom de guerre ‘thelostobject’.
(Evan Hecox)
There is a wide range of materials and methods in use for the show, everything from backgrounds of vintage papers collage in Evan Hecox wonderful paintings to complete multicolored tape collages from Spanish artist, Anna Taratiel (OVNI). Scott Albrecht’s meticulously crafted wooden assemblages, and Lennard Schuurmans loose found object signage are other good examples of the use of alternate materials in this expo. Graphic Surgery uses finely tuned laser cut pieces of wood to create depth along with elegance in their pieces. Brittany Gould creates highly complex geometric lights using only simple paper triangles, and the delicate combination creates a wonderful kind of minimalism in her work. Sandra Fettingis uses smartly crafted acrylic in stacks to create dimension and illusion. Hyland Mather uses string and discarded materials found on the streets along with mistint paint for a small gallery mural in a style he calls a ‘shapepile’ .
Despite the large group and the wide range of materials, the show fits together very nicely, and feels both diverse and focused at the same time.
To learn more and see more, you can check the site for ‘Direction / Instruction’ here
For purchase inquiries, you can visit Paradigm’s web catalogue of works available here
For those in Philly that wish to visit the show, Paradigm is located at 764 S. 4th Street, open Tues, Thursdays and Saturdays from Noon – 6pm.
The Current complete ‘Direction / Instruction’ Lineup:
Instagrams Linked
108 , Anna Taratiel (OVNI) , Brittany Gould, Chad Hasegawa, Evan Hecox, Graphic Surgery, Labuenaylamala, Lennard Schuurmans, Liam Snootle, Mary Iverson, Nelio, Ramon Bonilla, Remi Rough, Rubin 415, Sandra Fettingis, Scott Albrecht, Thelostobject
Graphic Surgery
Scott Albrecht
Brittany Gould
Sandra Fettingis
Chad Hasegawa
Ramon Bonilla
108
Liam Snootle
Mary Iverson
The comment about the show been both diverse and focused is right on the money.