~’BIG RINGER’ . . ORGANIZED & CURATED BY ANDREW GUENTHER / ANDREW EDLIN GALLERY / OPENING PIX !! – PART I
subtext: CRAFT / ART / CONCEPT
utilizing made-by-hand / DIY ‘skills’ that very much leaned to the . . improvised, passionate & one-of-a-kind.
meshed with a strong poetry of mind / & a symbolism . . that went well past: sublime & hit all the bases,
from skeptic to lustful / tempestuous & powerful / to sweet & gentle / & even flat-out: wary, hurt, scared, and often, just plain ole . . “it’s complicated”.
and, even . . “No”.
if you are seeing art – this weekend / this is a must-see, local venue . . swing by !!
‘BIG RINGER’ . . .
ORGANIZED & CURATED BY ANDREW GUENTHER / aka EAT THE LEAF
OVER 100 ARTISTS . . RE-IMAGINE / THE ENGAGEMENT RING
UP THRU . . . JUNE 8, 2019.
ANDREW EDLIN GALLERY
more: ‘BIG RINGER’ exhibit – ANDREW EDLIN
PIX FROM THE OPENING – PART I / SAT APRIL 27, 2019
ANDREW GUENTHER . . must have had a mighty vision, of tiny things interacting . . when he first dreamed up this show.
because he not only held it together, but surpassed all expectations . . .
the range of the works, and the diverse emotional ‘bases’ – they hit, was a kind of miniature kaleidoscope of marriage commitment, seen through the eyes of contemporary art, and, that should really be stated as . . cutting edge / underground contemporary art.
these were not your mainstream pros flaunting their wares. these were for the most part, voices from the frontier.
I expected the work to be bold, which it was. maybe outrageous, perhaps lovely, even lustful . . and knowing Andrew, most likely, in a proto-goth, heavy metal way: contrarian. and, that – it was. and more.
what I did not expect, was the polished to a fine moment / inspired . . presentation.
I had sort of envisioned rows of plexiglass shelves, maybe display counter-tops / instead, what you get is a series of ‘specific’ conversations – in small settings, with each ring, or ring, NOT !! . .
showcased – as if a miniature theatrical stage play was at ‘hand’.
I’ll have to start calling Andrew – ‘Shakespeare’, from now on.
oh, the stories . . that got told !!
just riffing off a little, as in tiny, but tradition-heavy . . ring.
RING BY – MARK THOMAS GIBSON, ‘Behold’, 2019.
ink on paper. 14.5 x 10.25 in.
well, first of all – everything was supposed to be a ‘ring’ (!!), and not bigger than 5 in. in any one direction !!
you only know what you’re in for, when you move past the entry desk, down a brief corridor, and arrive into the main room, like a ‘reveal’. the first thing I wanted to find, to help bring the show into perspective . . was the most contrarian thing in the room, and this saturated print-like drawing !! . . was it.
right there on the first, street-facing, front wall. Ka-boom.
2-D not 3-D, larger than 5 in. & def . . not wearable.
but a ‘poster’ image, for LOVE – DIVINE !!!! none-the-less.
this was a bell ring-er / and it’s song was glorious. it had a perch, like . . ‘head of the table’.
it lent a kind of in-your-face rebel / goth, black & white vibe to the proceedings & set a tone, for sure.
ecstatic. and not in a rapper bling bling way either.
more . . as in : American outsider / ecstatic painter.
so this is how the presentation . . went.
small groupings . . on shelves or stand-alone tables / as perfect and concise, as an Emily Dickinson poem.
NANCY SMITH, ‘Sewing Machine Ring: Won’t you marry me, my darling millennial crafter?”, 2019.
thrift-shop silver-plated band, miniature dollhouse cast-iron ‘antique’ (fly-wheel) sewing machine. 2 x 1-3/4 x 1/2 in.
note: the ‘fly-wheel’ / i.e. it is hand-operated / as opposed to electric, & now monster / computer programmed machines.
and, there was my ‘ring’, squarely established – just below the Mark Thomas Gibson drawing.
it looked really profound, I was surprised. the way it was displayed, it really did speak to how surprised & honored I was to be included . . in a crafts-based, but nonetheless highly . . rebel / hard-core improvised show.
it did seem to speak – to this generation.
left: SARAH SCHECHTER, ‘Magic Ring’, 2019. Tinfoil, acrylic paint, and flowers. 5 x 5 in.
right: RYAN KITSON, ‘Ruby Ring Toy’, 2019. Ruby, resin, pottery, plaster, glass. 7 x 4 x 4 in.
it was astounding to see my common-sense ring – a practical ode to a generic diy generation / sharing a table with these 2 wild & crazy pieces, pieces that could not be more different – if they had tried to out-do each other, in advance !!
‘INFINITY’ – thy very definition is a 100+ NYC artist show !!
RYAN KITSON, . . . it’s complicated (!!)
NANU AL-HAMAD, “I Don’t”, 2019. (!!!)
Matches, jewelry box. 3 x 2 x 3 in.
opps, so much for romanticism, or is that incredibly romantic in a deeper way ?
great metaphor, if you’ve been married, no more words – needed.
just laying it – out. very straight-forward. elegant, but harsh. just like life.
in fact I think, ‘my’ table . . was the heavy metal one. everything was kind of dark, serious and goth.
since my piece was more of a riff, a pun, an ode !! a sentiment / I can only conclude I got in under the wire, on the basest of reasons, being the hard surfaces, and / ‘cast-iron’ is a heavy-metal – after all.
I thought the contrast of themes gave a great tension, in fact, all the display settings had this energy going on.
PRISCILLA FUSCO, ‘Untitled’, 2019.
stoneware/porcelain. 2.5 x 4 x 1.5 in.
white is the new black, esp when it is bone-colored, and skeleton-looking.
ANDREW GUENTHER, ‘Model for Ring’, 2019.
ABS plastic, wire and wax. 1 x 1 in.
this was Andrew’s ring !!
goth as only goth can be. ancient, like a magic spell, like a well-worn bone.
with blood tints at the . . beginning.
MIA GISELLE ANTER, ‘Guardian of Solitude’, 2019.
Brass, sterling silver, mirror.
3.25 x 1.5 x 1.5 in. / 3.25 x 2 x 1.5 in.
yes, definite . . a spell-casting / dark arts, heavy metal – table.
MIA GISELLE ANTER . . at the opening.
her ring was like a mirror.
skills / magic / black magic, craft / witchcraft.
spells / potions, passion . . everything a ring of such promise & often fearsome responsibility: should be.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH
