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| Demetrius Oliver, Sphera, 2012, C-print, 25 x 21 inches. Image via demetriusoliver.blogspot.com. |
11
Dimensions
June 7 – July 26, 2013
143B
Orchard Street
New York,
NY
Louis B.
James presents 11 Dimensions, a collaborative exhibition
featuring works by Titus Kaphar, Wardell Milan, and Demetrius Oliver. The installation will mark the third time that
the artists have juxtaposed their work beginning with their 2006 residency at
the Studio Museum in Harlem.
In this
age where quantum physics plays an increasingly prominent role and theoretical
mathematicians posit seemingly incomprehensible proofs of alternate dimensions,
the three artists use the simple tools of their respective trades to create images and
objects that feel paradoxically justified by the logic of some unknown
dimension. The eleven recent works by Kaphar, Milan, and Oliver seek to explore
the complexity and pliability of time in ways that upend our understanding of history
and speak to the implausible through the poetic use of diverse materials.
In
Kaphar's work, historical paintings are overturned through the lexicon of
modern painting gestures. Through cutting, crushing and stitching, Kaphar's
work reconstructs narratives of the past in order to present alternate endings
to familiar and unfamiliar historical events.
Time seems
to collapse in Milan’s photo based collages, creating visually and thematically
dense images that expose the fluidity between moments. Representations of the
body are fragmented, displaced, and ornamented in ways that enact the drama of
human frailty and mutability.
In
Oliver’s prints and sculptures, the terrestrial becomes cosmic, forcing us to
reckon with the inability to depict the infinite through finite means. Relying
on the prosaic and quotidian, materials are transformed in unexpected ways to
describe distant
phenomena.
Using
photography, painting and sculpture, all three artists collectively imagine a
complex world where time and space are malleable.
During
their year-long residency at the Studio Museum, the artists developed a strong
friendship as a result of an unexpected synergy between their artistic
pursuits. After their residency, they relocated to a shared studio in Chelsea,
where they continued their exchange, resulting in a 2007 exhibition entitled
Blur at Arndt & Partner, Berlin. While they currently maintain separate
studios in the New York metropolitan area, Kaphar, Milan, and Oliver continue
to be creatively influenced, inspired
and challenged by each other.
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