Fresh! - Invitational Exhibition Provides a Blank Canvas for Emerging Artists at Projects Gallery

Krista Rothwell, One and One is One, diptych 36 x 96, oil on canvas

Projects Gallery opens its 2008-09 season with Fresh! 2008. Inspired by Philadelphia’s rich and multi-faceted artistic talent, this invitational exhibition highlights this city’s emerging artists. The palpable energy of the current art scene has been garnering increasing attention and critical respect. Fresh! is an unique opportunity to bring together disparate artists united not by imposed thematic or material concerns but as a chorus of individual voices heralding the vibrant, varied directions of contemporary art. Selected by gallery Director Helen Meyrick because of her immediate visceral response to their work, these artists diversely employ sculpture, photography, painting and drawing. Regardless of chosen style, material, or subject, these artists are a breath of fresh air.

Carl Main, Pooh Deer, 25 x 10 x 18, mixed media

A sampling of the contrasts in style illustrates the range of the artists, while placing them in the larger context of contemporary movements. Krista Rothwell paints neo-realistic images of herself and her sister on flat, spaceless color fields, demonstrating that the art of painting is far from dead. Carl Marin portrays the confrontation between nature and urban encroachment, echoing current design and kitsch aesthetics. Brooke Holloway’s works on paper require careful viewing, revealing biting commentary on feminist issues through the contradictory tangles of popular culture. Previously a graphic designer, Gregory Farrar Scott’s sculptural work is imbued with humor, cheekily riffing on found objects used to create pseudo-portraits.

Gregory Farrar Scott, Mask 10, 14.75 x 8 x 6, mixed media

Fresh! provides these artists a blank canvas on which to make their mark in the Philadelphia arts arena. Participants include: Cat Badger, Rosanne D'Andrea, Talia Greene, Brooke Holloway, Carl Marin, Itsuki Ogihara, Marilyn Rodriguez-Behrle, Lynn Rosenthal, Mia Rosenthal, Krista Rothwell, Gregory Farrar Scott, Heather Sundquist, and others. Many of these artists are recent graduates from several of Philadelphia’s finest art schools, including Moore College of Art and Design, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and Temple University’s Tyler School of Art.

Brooke Holloway, Dumb Bitch, 60 x 48, acrylic on canvas

Fresh! runs from Friday August 29 through September 27, 2008 with a First Friday artist reception September 5th, from 6-9 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Wednesday & Thursday 4-7 and Friday & Saturday noon to 7 p.m. For more information or digital images, please contact Projects Gallery at 267-303-9652 or info@projectsgallery.com.