Posers

POSERS, Conceived by Fritz Chesnut and Jennifer Karady

Posers is a group exhibition of emerging artists whose work explores the representation of self through assuming a role or character. The fine line between the authentic self and an alter ego or fantasy character is addressed through photography, video, sculpture, painting, and installation. The work reflects the dual meaning of the word “poser;” either one who assumes a sustained posture or one who affects an attitude. In the information age, identity is more constructed than ever. Posers reflects different vehicles to identity construction, including familial roles, fashion, fame, childhood memory and tourist snapshots.

Hrafnhildur Arnardóttir presents cropped photographs of herself absurdly dressed in a chop shop of tacky fashions, revealing and questioning her obsession with her own image. David Henry Brown Jr.’s snapshots of himself with celebrities were acquired by assuming the identity of a socialite and infiltrating celebrity functions. Johanna Burke’s interactive installation of a modern office suite includes a trained corps of “escorts” who offer conversation and free sympathy to gallery visitors. Fritz Chesnut paints himself into scenes from tabloid photographs, placing himself in the candid position of a celebrity stalked by the media. Charley Friedman photographs himself mimicking a famous Chuck Close self-portrait, walking the line between forgery and authenticity. Anthony Goicolea utilizes digital manipulation to clone himself in photographs, reworking childhood memories into awkward scenarios fusing personal narrative and narcissistic fantasy. Oliver Irwin’s video installation shows the artist playing a smiling tourist on a cross-country road trip, and addresses the tourist’s detachment and identification with the American landscape. In her photographs, Jennifer Karady re-enacts her experience of childhood by wearing children’s clothing and posing with her doll in suburban locations in order to explore the family’s role in shaping identity. Nina Levy fabricates self-portraits wearing prosthetics recalling everything from overblown superheroes to waiflike mannequins. Posture and scale are used to address questions of self-presentation and self-integration. Elizabeth Shapiro appears as Elizabeth S, in photographs investigating the subtle dynamics of family relations. Family portraits staged in her parent’s home hint at the formative conditions responsible for the development of her psyche.

Opening Reception: Friday, March 24, 7 – 9 p.m.
Gallery Hours: Wednesday – Sunday, 12 – 6 p.m.

For more information, please contact Lauren Ross at the gallery.