In this inaugural show at Tattfoo Temple of Art and Design, the visitor encounters 10 artists from the United States and Europe working in virtually every medium. The depictions in some case are realistic while in others quite abstract. 'Bodilicious' is the title due to the enduring interest of the body itself; its luxurious quality and its immediate sensualness.
curated by Paul Sharpe, Paul Sharpe Contemporary
Art, New York, NY
The body has been depicted in art throughout the ages in many formats, but
only recently has it become an object or a metaphor, a stimulant or a turn
off. Painters, photographers, sculptors, and new media artists all are
taking daring approaches to the portrayal of the body as a starting point
for creative expression. In this show it is hoped that a survey of varied
approaches to the body will help to reveal for the viewer some of what is
new and what is renewed in depictions of the body.
In this inaugural show at Tattfoo Temple of Art and Design, the visitor
encounters 10 artists from the United States and Europe working in virtually
every medium. The depictions in some case are realistic while in others
quite abstract. "Bodilicious" is the title due to the enduring interest of
the body itself; its luxurious quality and its immediate sensualness.
The show can be roughly divided into two parts: the painters and sculptors,
and the photographers and new media artists. Certain aspects, however, are
common in all of the artists works, namely the sculptural element and a
depiction of volume. Even the painters, such as Amaya Bozal from Madrid,
Spain, create work on canvas that is inherently sculptural. Along with the
moving images of Lee Whittier and the still images of Robert Irwin, the
viewer finds a painterly quality in their work. Katy Martin crosses all
boundaries with her approach of painting her own body, photographing
herself, then projecting the image onto uneven surfaces to create truly
abstract, yet representational images that are photography, painting,
sculpture, and movement all at once. Volume is presented both as the
physical representation of positive and negative space, as well as a
metaphor for value and values in the exhibit.
Robert Appleton gives us a series of small sculptures based loosely on the
Greco-Roman practice of sculpting only the head and the genitals of their
subjects as identifiers, while sublimating the torso and legs and arms to
near stick forms. Appleton takes this further with his sculptures made
using cardboard tubes to represent the torso and extremities, with
exaggerated plaster head and genitalia
Arturo Cuenca, a prominent Cuban artist, forces the viewer to understand the
principles of perception and aesthetics through an approach that combines
photography and painting. The idea of perception is referenced in much of
the work in the show, however, Amos Badertscher gives his sitters the
opportunity to truly express how they perceive themselves as worthy and
beautiful members of society, instead of society's perception of them as
street kids, hustlers, and drug addicts.
Alfredo Cannatta, from Milan, Italy, and Dylan Blue Stone offer stylized
depictions of people we have never met, but somehow seem familiar. The
idealized gesture in their works talks to the body-conscious times in which
one lives today, while stating interesting commentaries about current
cultural mores.
Aaron Krach brings a conceptual basis to his work, juxtaposing snapshots and
lottery cards. He talks about desire and need - the things bodies do quite
naturally and often are taken for granted. Using simple readily accessible
mediums, Krach questions whether or not the naked body is a turn on or turn
off, a cheap thrill, a risk, a gamble not-worth-two dollars, disposable, a
deep metaphor about value, or simply is the body just plain fun and
something to gaze upon with pleasure.
Bodilicious in an ambitious show, which pulls together a survey of artists
working in different locales and presenting to the viewer both common and
extraordinary explorations of the "body - delicious".
WHEN: June 1, Opening Reception 3 - 7 PM, runs through July 27
OPEN HOURS: Saturday and Sunday, 11 AM to 5 PM
Tattfoo Temple of Art and Design, 67 Monroe Avenue, Staten Island,
NY 10301 telephone 718 442 3375