~HEATHER BENJAMIN . . ‘DEATH OF A TAIL’ / DRESS SHOP / OPENING NIGHT PIX !!
‘DEATH OF a TAIL’ – NEW WORK BY HEATHER BENJAMIN
OPENED DEC 15, 2017
the show runs thru JAN 12, 2018
DRESS SHOP, 322 TROUTMAN ST., BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN
more info: DRESS SHOP GALLERY / ‘DEATH OF A TAIL’ – HEATHER BENJAMIN
some brief notes from the gallery website, link above for full essay:
‘DEATH OF A TAIL’ . . . marks a departure for BENJAMIN. Having spent years with her practice firmly rooted in DIY zine & comics culture, her drawings have typically been made with the intent of mass reproduction, through photocopying & screen printing. With this body of work, Benjamin moves in a new direction, creating works whose primary motivations are not exclusively to be reproduced & reprinted as their final form, but are instead made to be viewed as singular & precious objects . . .
The works range from the most minuscule of talismans to larger than life representations of the female creatures that, until now, have lived only in the pages of her books . . .
HEATHER BENJAMIN . . . b.1989 Tarrytown New York / lives & works in Providence, RI / Rhode Island.
She graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2016 with a BFA in Printmaking.
PIX – FROM THE OPENING – ‘DEATH OF A TAIL’ – NEW WORK BY HEATHER BENJAMIN:
HEATHER BENJAMIN . . at the opening party, FRI DEC 15, 2017
big crowd at DRESS SHOP, to-nite !!
I overheard some (other) guys !! . . .
saying the explicit ‘female’ imagery was shocking . . !!
I hadn’t even noticed !! in the bigger picture !!
so I’ll take a closer look . . . digital !!
I think it’s pretty elegant .. calligraphic, and well, definite not . . intersex !!
or, is there some sense of that, intersex ?
it was definite not ‘porn’, here. it was just pretty much descriptive / decorative.
art as ‘bio’ – in the classic sense. Asian art history-inspired. poetic.
definite . . ‘not’ scummy. not ‘bondage’ etc. etc.
though, if you look through her body of work – you begin to see a ‘spectrum’.
actually, I think the ‘bold’ way in which the ‘hands’ are drawn, and how expressive they are . . and how classic Chinese / Japanese (?) art history alluding they are,
is . . more interesting, plastic / composition, draftsmanship, technique – wise !!
ps: her color palette is so right on the mark, right now.
esp in fashion, all those cutting edge, new age crafty / embellished ‘quilt’ coats & ‘patch’ sweaters are all afalling all over themselves – with that . . muted pink salmon color.
prob because it’s a shade . . that works well in the ‘neon’ range of widely, commercially available synthetic yarns.
& drawing inks, too.
center: artist EMMANUEL LIMON, founder/director of DRESS SHOP GALLERY, with AIMEE LAROSE and SASHA SHVER.
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH – FROM THE OPENING / DEC 15, 2017. DRESS SHOP GALLERY, BROOKLYN
IMAGE VIA HEATHER BENJAMIN / BIG CARTEL STORE
YEP !!!!
DEFINITE CHECK OUT:
HEATHER BENJAMIN – BIG CARTEL STORE !!
HEATHER BENJAMIN – ARTIST PORTFOLIO WEBSITE / BABY-FAT.NET !!
HEATHER BENJAMIN – TUMBLR PAGE !!
HEATHER BENJAMIN – IMAGE VIA HEATHER BENJAMIN / PORTFOLIO WEBSITE / BABY-FAT.NET