bemisUNDERGROUND: Fragments & Details: the Bitter and the Sweet - Curated by Matt Orand & Matt Walker
Event Time: March 31- April 22, 2006
Opening Reception: Friday, March 31, 7:00 – 11:00 p.m.
Artists Matt Orand and Matt Walker are transforming truckloads of abandoned possessions into their installation Fragments & Details: the Bitter and the Sweet, a dialogue between the animate and the inanimate, showing at the Bemis Underground from March 31st to April 22nd. The public is warmly invited to attend the Opening Night Reception on Friday, March 31st from 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm, and regular Gallery Hours on Fridays and Saturdays from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. The artists will also present a Gallery Talk on Thursday, April 6th at 8:30 pm, and they are hosting a special Gallery Tour with a free breakfast on Sunday, April 9th at 10:00 am. A Closing Event takes place on Saturday, April 22nd from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm, where every collected item in the show will be sold off individually. All events are FREE to the public, but donations supporting the Bemis Underground are welcome.
Envisioning found objects as raw materials, artists Orand and Walker transform them into composite visual stories while still recognizing their distinctive histories. The worn nature of each object alludes to its life story, a perception that the artists utilize to address themes of absence, loss and the intimate relationships we develop with our surroundings. “These objects constitute our visual landscape and their familiarity brings us close to them. Because of this relationship, we find our mental states being reflected in their physicality. The brokenness of these items trigger internal feelings of distress and comfort,” remark the artists.
Rather than installing pre-fabricated sculptures in the gallery space, Orand and Walker conceptualize and create work within the space itself. “We will be working in the gallery every day for the month leading up to the opening. That way, we can see all of the objects we’ve collected in the space itself before we make artistic decisions about the show,” say the artists. “So much of our past work began with an idea that took months to fabricate, but with this project we are making the creative and building process one and the same.”
Items the artists have already collected include a dead tree, a vintage automobile, a street lamp, dozens of television sets, live animals, a mountain of clothing plus a household’s worth of appliances, furniture, cabinetry and assorted bric-a-brac. This show elicits a sense of nostalgia with the smell of decaying leaves, the feel of a well-worn recliner, the languid ticking of a grandfather clock, the warm flicker of the static from a console TV, and the reassuring feel of a threadbare blanket.
About the Artists:
Orand and Walker both received their BFA in Sculpture from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2005. Overlapping artistic visions in their own artwork have led them to work collectively off and on for the past three years. Prior to their current project for the Bemis Underground, they have collaborated on installations for the UNO Art Gallery and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts. These pieces have included creating a fully functioning office for a fictitious manufacturing company complete with employees to a love-themed party filled with bubbles, hot pink feather boas and all things kitsch.
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www.bemisunderground.org
mwalker1700@yahoo.com
Underground Phone Line: 402.408.2397