Kevin Hooyman’s ‘Dark Walk’ at Proof, ‘The Exquisite Line’ at BU, ‘Material Meditation’ at The New Art Center
By RANDI HOPKINS | September 10, 2008
Kevin Hooyman, Natural Relationship |
“Kevin Hooyman: Dark Walk” at Proof Gallery, 516 East Second St, South Boston | September 13–October 18 | 508.963.9102
“The Exquisite Line” at BU’s Sherman Gallery, 775 Comm Avenue [second floor], Boston | September 16–October 24 | 617.358.0295
“Material Meditation” at New Art Center, 61 Washington Park, Newtonville | September 15–October 26 | 617.964.3424
“Hecho A Mano” at Casa de la Cultura/Center for Latino Arts, 85 West Newton St, South End | September 18–October 29 | 617.927.1707 |
In the wordy world of artist and graphic novelist Kevin Hooyman, whose “DARK WALK” show opens at Proof Gallery on September 13, densely packed line drawings take you deep into strange and fantastical — usually wooded — scenes, whereas his looser, washier, text-filled images look like a cross between Raymond Pettibon and a trippy coloring book. He uses his art to explore serious subjects, among them our relationship with our fellow plant and animal life, the forces of good and evil, teamwork, love, and coping strategies. In an on-line interview, Hooyman says, “I am trying to talk about some things that you might call part of the ‘big picture.’ Sometimes I feel kind of cheesy for always talking about things like time or space or the nature of the human creature, but I can’t help it. I was the kind of kid who lay awake at night completely freaking out about this stuff.” His text shows a good ear for contemporary dialogue, turning the works into little pieces of theater in some cases, and giving voice to timely and timeless concerns.Fine lines also take center stage in “THE EXQUISITE LINE,” which opens at BU’s Sherman Gallery on September 16. With works on paper by Thomas Duncan, Ledelle Moe, Rune Olsen, Stas Orlovski, and Casey Jex Smith, BU School of Visual Arts exhibitions director Lynne Cooney explores the expression of delicacy, intricacy, and beauty, along with their dark twin, pain. Random stuff in all its stuffness comes to overflowing life in “MATERIAL MEDITATION,” which opens at the New Art Center on September 15. Curated by participating artist Denise Driscoll, the show features installations by six artists working with heaps of material including hand-dyed silk organza, wire, mesh, folded paper envelopes, deconstructed piano parts, and discarded fishermen’s knots to explore metaphors and meanings revealed through the artistic use of massive accumulation and repeated forms.
Contemporary art that reflects the great transformations Latino and Latin-American art have undergone in the last century is finding a new platform for expression at the Casa de la Cultura/Center for Latino Arts in the South End. The Center joins the Jorge Hernández performance space as a lively center for the arts in Boston, and its first annual juried exhibition, “HECHO A MANO” (“Made by Hand”), which opens on September 18, presents work by artists whose interpretation of the show’s theme include using one’s hand to manipulate digital technology and creating video documentation of a politically charged performance work. Artists on view include Ivette Spradlin, Krista Caballero, Cecilia Mendez, and Rosemary Meza DesPlas.
On the Web
Proof Gallery: www.proof-gallery.com
BU’s Sherman Gallery: www.bu.edu/cfa
New Art Center: www.newartcenter.org
Casa de la Cultura/Center for Latino Arts: www.claboston.org
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