Matters of Size

Sometimes size does matter. The artists in Matter of Size are purposeful in their presentation of scale that physically encourages viewer immersion. Whether it is a world that can be viewed as a portal to an alternate landscape that subverts recognition or demands a physical reaction, or a wall of detailed information that must be slowly processed and traversed, presenting these concepts and physical embodiments succeed in the realm of large.

Open two days:
* 12-5 p.m. Saturday, May 11 (Brian Thomas Jones sitting), and * 12-5 p.m. Saturday May 18 (Dani Dodge hosting)
* or by appointment

Roni Feldman, Jenny Hager, and Max Presneill deal in the language of bold abstraction, writ large, creating palimpsests where fragments of the physical world are beset and overwhelmed by phenomena and the language of painting. Image is presented and subverted, creating multiple contexts and second readings, while Jennifer Celio presents the world of nature and the juxtapositions of abstract and representational imagery. Material and texture reinforce this juxtaposition, inviting the viewer to inhabit her landscape and ponder nature in relation to humanity and vice versa.

Brian Thomas Jones and Valerie Wilcox’s large scale, constructed pieces sit between the realm of painting and sculpture, employing the language of both. Jones’ work is composed intuitively, then painted in both the harmonious and dissonant color combinations he experiences while driving the streets of L.A. Scale encourages the viewer’s interaction, and the intimacy of detail detains them. Wilcox presents a fantastical landscape where nature's forces collide with human influence to express a potentially beneficial outcome.

Dani Dodge employs unexpected sculptural materials to alter space. Her piece, an abstract caricature of the leaves of the Joshua tree, overwhelms with its size while her detailed weaving of disparate objects invite intimacy. Joe Davidson’s ambiguous objects serve as maquettes for much larger, monumental forms, displaying a matter-of-fact attitude.

These works evoke the self-referential explorations of the Arte Povera and Mono-Ha groups, dressing down monumentality, while pressing it’s assumptions.