Mike Tierney – curated by Peter Doig

White Columns is proud to present the first New York solo exhibition of work by the Jackson Hole, Wyoming-based artist and skier Mike Tierney.

The exhibition has been organized by the artist Peter Doig.

A legendary extreme skier Mike Tierney (b.1977) is a self-taught artist who moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, aged 19 to paint skis at the Igneous Ski factory – a manufacturer of custom skis suited to cliff-jumping and back country skiing. Mike Tierney’s goal was to make the skis look as “awesome as they skied.” Mike now heads up Igneous’s Research & Design department riding, testing and painting their unique custom-made skis. Peter Doig met Mike two years ago on a skiing trip to Jackson Hole, seeing his art for the first time at Igneous’s headquarters. A friendship developed based around their mutual interests in skiing and art. Tierney’s work invariably focuses on the Wyoming landscapes that inspire him – including such celebrated skiing sites as Cody’s Peak, No Name mountain, and  Corbett’s Couloir (also known as “America’s scariest ski slope”) –  places where Tierney regularly skis and has “experienced so much magic.“ Informed as much by street art – he acknowledges the impact of Banksy’s stencil techniques on his own approach – as the traditions of mythic Western landscape painting , Tierney’s exhibition at White Columns, his first outside Jackson Hole includes paintings, reliefs, and sculptural work largely created with the same materials – sustainably-sourced wood, spray paint, stencils, and layers of resin – employed in the custom-ski manufacturing process.

White Columns would like to thank Mike Tierney for his commitment to this exhibition. We would also like to thank Peter Doig for introducing us to Mike’s work.