17/08/16—27/08/16
Liz Nielsen & Max Warsh—Curated by Jessamyn Fiore
Opening reception:
6–8pm Wednesday 17th August
Exhibition runs:
Thursday 18th – Saturday 27th August
Pallas Projects is delighted to present Liz Nielsen & Max Warsh, in association with Sirius Arts Centre. Curated by Jessamyn Fiore, this exhibition presents the work of two outstanding American artists whose contemporary art practice employs a unique exploration of the materiality of photography, producing striking abstract works that push the boundaries of the medium to contemplate its use of light and memory.
Liz Nielsen describes her process as “painting with light.” She creates photograms, a form of camera-less photography, employing light sensitive photographic paper that is exposed to a creative variety of light sources (from an enlarger to a bike lamp to a laser) through brightly coloured plastic collages. The result is a completely unique work with surprising painterly effects and stunning colour tones.
Max Warsh employs the camera to capture in minutia the details of everyday urban architecture. These architectural choices, the ones we see so regularly we fail to notice them, are in fact as intimate as our daily routine – they inform us as a half memory on which we build our sense of place. Warsh prints and manipulates the images, creating intricately collaged works that are reflective of the original architecture yet also distort and even renew its visage. Like with a faded memory given fresh focus, there is a challenge to push beyond assumption and revive our personal perception of what comprises our lived space.
The exhibition was first shown at Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh in July/August 2016. It is presented at Pallas Projects/Studios as part of our 20 year anniversary programme which looks to celebrate artist-run culture, with thanks to Jessamyn Fiore, Sirius Arts Centre, Liz Nielsen & Max Warsh, and talks curator Angel Bellaran.
Artist-Run Spaces: Conversations Across The Atlantic
A day of panel talks on artist-run culture, curated by Angel Bellaran
Presented by Pallas Projects/Studios, in association with Sirius Arts Centre
10.30am–5pm, Saturday 20th August, booking essential – details to be announced, lunch included
(Followed by DIY Artist-Run Social with music, food and refreshments to celebrate Pallas Projects/Studios 20 year anniversary)
Participants: Jessamyn Fiore (former director Thisisnotashop, Dublin), Liz Nielsen & Carolina Wheat (Swimming Pool Project Space, Chicago, and Elijah Wheat Showroom, New York), Max Warsh (Regina Rex, New York), Mark Cullen & Gavin Murphy (Pallas Projects/Studios and Artist-Run Europe), Miranda Driscoll (former director The Joinery, Dublin/Sirius Arts Centre), Lee Welch (Basic Space/former director FOUR, Dublin), Clive Murphy (former co-director Catalyst Arts, Belfast), Maud Cotter (Founder Member, National Sculpture Factory, Cork)
The panel offers an international and interdisciplinary forum in which colleagues in the contemporary art world, specifically in the field of artist-run or ‘DIY’ spaces, can talk openly about the changes and challenges of working today: this includes the topics of funding, social media, and location-specific contexts.
Morning session: participants briefly review their own history of working within independent spaces in both the United States & Europe. Afterwards, in a roundtable discussion, panel members assess these and other stories in relation to experiences from other members. Afternoon session: focuses more closely on the current state of affairs surrounding artist-run programs today – with an emphasis on comparing and contrasting the international models and the programs functioning from emergent contexts or scenes.
This gathering is sparked by increasingly urgent conversations about the difficulty of the practice of choosing to work outside the institutional context. Our hope is to make stronger connections between artist-run culture, and inspire more communication and collectivism amongst our peers, so that we can continue to thrive as an integral part of visual arts culture on both sides of the Atlantic, and in light of the publication by PP/S of the book ‘Artist-Run Europe’, which will be showcased for the first time ahead of an official launch in September.
The panel will be broadcast live on the event page via Facebook Livestream at 1030 GMT/ 530 EST
Biographies:
Liz Nielsen (American b. 1975) is a Brooklyn based photographic artist. She has exhibited extensively; most recently her work was shown as part of the Material Art Fair (Mexico City), London Photo (UK), and in New York at Denny Gallery, Laurence Miller Gallery, and Danziger Gallery. She received her MFA from the University of Illinois, Chicago and her BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Nielsen's works have been reviewed in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and ArtSlant.
Liz Nielsen website
Jessamyn Fiore (American b. 1980) is a New York based curator and writer as well the co-director of the Estate of Gordon Matta-Clark. She is the curator of the Jean-Paul Najar Foundation in Dubai, UAE, opened in March, 2015. She was the Director of Thisisnotashop, a not for profit gallery space in Dublin, from 2007-2010. She received a Masters in contemporary art theory, practice, and philosophy from The National College of Art and Design, Dublin, in 2009.
Exhibitions curated include 112 Greene Street: The Early Years (1970–1974) at David Zwirner in New York (2011), which led to her editing the critically acclaimed, eponymous catalogue, published by David Zwirner and Radius Books (2012); and a second exhibition for David Zwirner New York titled Gordon Matta-Clark: Above and Below (2013). Recently, she curated II Machines: Clive Murphy & Trevor Tweeton at the Knockdown Center in Mespeth, Queens (May 2015) and was a partner at Rawson Projects gallery on the Lower East Side (Sep 2014 - May 2015), organizing exhibitions by Nathaniel Mary Quinn and Lilja Birgisdottir among others.
Jessamyn Fiore website
Max Warsh (American b. 1980) lives and works in New York City. Most recent exhibitions include Approximately Spring at Longhouse Projects (New York, NY), The Shared Patio at Greenpoint Terminal Gallery (Brooklyn, NY), Hot and Cold, Laurence Miller Gallery, NY and Nothing Ever Happened, Chapter 61, New York, NY. He received his MFA from the University of Illinois, Chicago and his BA from Sarah Lawrence College, New York. He is a co-founder and director of the artist-run gallery Regina Rex based in New York City.
Angel Bellaran is an independent curator currently based Brooklyn but previously based in San Francisco & Dublin, Ireland. Bellaran has spent over the last decade divided between The United States & Western Europe pursuing a love of contemporary art and the study of international curatorial and artistic practices. Most recent projects and collaborations include Up Against the Wall at Spring Break Art Show: New York City's curator-driven art fair during Armory Arts Week, and GREY Book II, photographed by Nan Goldin and styled by Valentina Ilardi Martin. Bellaran is an alumni of the Institute of Art, Design & Technology's MAVis programme in Dublin Ireland.
Angel Bellaran website
