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7/1/2009

Michael Bevilacqua

Gering and Lopez Gallery, New York

GERING & LóPEZ GALLERY is pleased to present Corrosions of Conformity, a solo exhibition of work by New York-based artist Michael Bevilacqua. Bevilacqua's new paintings and works on paper command the viewer's attention with their robust palette and reflective content. In both process and concept, Bevilacqua has moved away from the crisp, graphic style that dominated his earlier work towards a more gestural and raw appearance. The resultant pieces are multilayered, consisting of a combination of different painting techniques including free-hand brushstrokes, collage, masking and stenciling.

Working towards a heightened sense of abstraction, Bevilacqua engages his audience in a dialogue by continuing to use cultural icons from children's fairytales, alternative music, and art history. In the Pop art tradition, Bevilacqua comes to terms with our times by juxtaposing images associated with these various cultural currents. Like the digital media that has come to define modern communication, these paintings and drawings defy a linear reading, engaging their audience on many levels. By creating multi-dimensional compositions, Bevilacqua allows the viewer several avenues of entry into his work. Through this practice, Bevilacqua creates art that defies easy categorization while targeting the ever-shifting fashions of society's conventions. This exhibition alludes to Bevilacqua's practice of recycling materials he has used or images he has seen, as key motifs frequently resurface throughout his work. The same icon takes on new meaning in different settings, corroding the original message.

Though the works appear abstract, their subject matter is quite personal, taken from Bevilacqua's experiences. The artist's recent travels to Greece inspired much of the aesthetic quality of this exhibition, seen in the pervasive Aegean blue hues and nautical themes. Conversely, this body of work also grapples with darker elements represented by skulls, body parts and poison apples. By meshing these macabre themes with a panoply of maritime imagery, Bevilacqua comes to terms with life and death in contemporary times.

Michael Bevilacqua was born in Carmel, California in 1966. He attended Long Beach State University and Santa Barbara City College, later continuing his studies at the Cambridge College of Art and Technology in Great Britain. Bevilacqua has exhibited internationally including solo shows at Galleri Faurschou in Beijing, China and Copenhagen, Denmark; Massimo Carasi/The Flat, Milan, Italy; The Louisiana Museum, Denmark; and Tomio Koyama Gallery, Tokyo, Japan. He has also exhibited in group shows at the Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France; Matthew Marks Gallery, New York, NY; Deste Foundation, Athens, Greece; The Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, AZ; and The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, CT. His work is in numerous public collections including the Mitsuni Collection, Tokyo, Japan; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA; Deste Foundation, Athens, Greece; Astrup Fearnley Museum, Oslo, Norway; The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; and the Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX. This will be Bevilacqua's first solo exhibition at Gering & López Gallery.

Please join us for a reception with the artist on Thursday, January 8th from 6-8pm.

Gering and Lopez Gallery
730 Fifth Avenue - New York
Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10am to 6pm.
Free admission

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