Circuit 12 Contemporary, medicine Dallas
May 12–June 16, cialis 2012
Owner Dustin Orlando has assembled a sampling of a group of contemporary artists – all of whom have very different styles but complement each other in an interesting way in both palette and aesthetic and become a cohesive show. While this show is a “sampling,” I have a feeling that Orlando has not only breadth in his artist clan, but depth, too. As much as I have liked both group shows at Circuit 12, I’m also anxious to see some depth from one or two artists in future shows.
Many of the artists exhibited are MFA trained in addition to being prolific working painters and sculptors. Each has an individual vision for their work that deeply engages the viewer. The show consists of 24 pieces, 22 of them for sale and 2 site-specific installations custom to the space. I’m interested to see more of these impermanent installations at Circuit 12 — I think this type of work might well be one of Orlando’s curatorial fortes. Artist Eddie Villaneuva contributes the installations using found objects and reused elements from previous impermanent installations.
John Guthrie, who paints super-clean geometric acrylic paintings on paper, has a collection of six pieces exhibited. With a sophisticated palette of neutral colors and unexpected brights buzzing against each other, Guthrie’s razorsharp technique is spot-on and highly decorative.
Orlando’s curatorial sense of humor shows in Jessy Nite’s art-as-social-commentary Lean on Me. This piece is sure to elicit a laugh as you absorb the message for the first time. I loved it.
Lucas Martell, the only local artist in the show, exhibits two intriguing paintings. Martell paints in watercolor and gouache on watercolor paper. His subjects are a combination of paintings of origami-like paper forms that he creates as models, and landscape elements framed by a window or simply by the paper shapes. He uses a crisp bright palette of teal and ultramarine with yellows and rich brown punches.
Finally, Aaron Moran’s Geom is a found-wood jigsaw puzzle animal-like sculpture that becomes more interesting the more you look at it. Apparently Moran’s Meme is a sort of retro-future science fiction space world with structures, ships, and aliens and whatnot. Dustin promises we’ll see more of Moran’s work in the future.
Deliberate or not, what Circuit 12 Contemporary shows leave you feeling is that you want to see more of these artists’ work, which is a pretty great way for gallery patrons to feel as they leave a show. Orlando is friendly and approachable — it’s clear he likes and understands artists and loves the work on the walls of his gallery.
— KENT BOYER
For more info:
Circuit 12
