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Reception April 15, 2016 - 5-7 PM - THROUGH JUNE 15, 2016
Nisa Touchon Fine Art - Santa Fe
http://www.nisatouchon.com
1925-C Rosina Street Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505
ARTISTS:
Melinda
Tidwell, Zach Touchon, Ginnie Gardiner, Matthew Rose, Marsha Balian,
Lisa Hochstein, Robert Mars, Zach Collins, Waldemar Strempler, David
Wallace, Kareem Rizk, Gary Bibb, Angela Holland, Steven B. Schreiber,
Colin Johnson, Evan Clayton Horback, Hope Kroll, Sherry Parker, Frank
Elbert Whipple, Joan Schulze, Lanny Quarles, Dennis Parlante &
Jonathan Whitfill, Julie Fitzgerald.
It's going to be Huge!April 15, 2016 - June 15, 2016
Nano
Technology, Mobile Media, Cell Phone Culture, Tiny House Movement,
Downsizing, Small Footprint; these are some of the trends in today's
society. In the world of collage art small is king. Due to the
kind of materials collage artists use such as books, magazines, old
papers, illustrations, etc. the majority of collage materials tend to
be roughly the size of a book page. The ergonomic considerations of a
book suggest that it be small and able to be handled. The previous
century has been rich in paper artifacts and this has allowed artists
to develop art forms based on this material.
Small works are more about a conversation among friends than a lecture to a large crowd. With small works the viewer is beckoned to come close to look upon and cherish the small details of the work that communicates through whispers rather than the amplification of large scale. In a small work every little detail takes on significance whether it be a small punctuation mark or the ghost of an image from the back side of the paper.
MATTHEW ROSE COMIX No. 3 2015 (Collage on Canvas).
As an art of its time, collage art; its imagery, its techniques, its attitude speaks to our confrontation with a fractured multifarious image of the world in an age of information overload. The activities of sifting, sorting, organizing and prioritizing become the basis and the goal of artistic activity in this hummingbird era of ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). Collage artists explore the artifacts that have poured out of the cornucopia of modern society using them as grist for the creative mill generating new works of art with materials that have already had their useful life and have been retired from their intended purpose. In the hands of collage artists these materials often achieve poetic stature when their inherent visual qualities are brought to the fore and their former usefulness disregarded.
Cecil Touchon
Small works are more about a conversation among friends than a lecture to a large crowd. With small works the viewer is beckoned to come close to look upon and cherish the small details of the work that communicates through whispers rather than the amplification of large scale. In a small work every little detail takes on significance whether it be a small punctuation mark or the ghost of an image from the back side of the paper.
Small,
intimate works focus our vision and make it sharp and clear. Like the
study of a poetic work, collage art often references allusions to a
broad, rich history beyond itself through the use of paper artifacts
containing printed matter, stains, fugitive hand written notation and
the patina of use or abuse. Every detail has significance and is part
of the content to be deciphered by the astute viewer.
Collage
artists form a unique and interesting community. The hunt for found
materials is crucial to the process of many collage artists causing
them to be consummate collectors of things. Their collecting of
material artifacts for their artistic appeal and possibilities rather
than for rarity or value often makes them keenly aware of popular
culture - present and past - with the subtle eye of an anthropological
curator.
From
an art collector's point of view, traditionally one often thinks of
small works or works on paper as preparatory for larger works on
canvas. Small works are often relegated to the department of drawing.
But in the case of collage such as seen in this exhibition, these small
intimate collages are typically the final work of art, not a study or a
preparation for another work. For the collector who is also a
bibliophile, collecting collage art should have a special place in
their heart and in their collection. Small framed collage works can be
collected like books, exhibited in clusters and stored on shelves or
like documents, kept unframed in file drawers to be brought out and
cherished then returned to the drawer.
As an art of its time, collage art; its imagery, its techniques, its attitude speaks to our confrontation with a fractured multifarious image of the world in an age of information overload. The activities of sifting, sorting, organizing and prioritizing become the basis and the goal of artistic activity in this hummingbird era of ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). Collage artists explore the artifacts that have poured out of the cornucopia of modern society using them as grist for the creative mill generating new works of art with materials that have already had their useful life and have been retired from their intended purpose. In the hands of collage artists these materials often achieve poetic stature when their inherent visual qualities are brought to the fore and their former usefulness disregarded.
Cecil Touchon
