Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Joel A. Bender, Jr. and Richard Nix: Saturday, December 4, 8-10pm


Gallery 1724 presents: "New Works by Joel A. Bender, Jr. and Richard Nix"

The opening reception will be Saturday, December 4, at Gallery 1724 from 8pm to 10pm. The exhibit will run until January 31, 2011.

Joel A. Bender, Jr. and Richard Nix, both recent graduates of the University of Houston, unveil new works on paper they have been exploring together for the past several years.

The exhibition contact is Tim Deason at 713-523-2547.

About Gallery 1724: Gallery 1724 is a d.i.y. contemporary art salon offering rotating, experimental art exhibits and performances since 2005. The venue is located in the Houston Museum District at 1724 Bissonnet St. (between Dunlavy and Woodhead), Houston, Texas 77005. For more information, please visit: www.gallery1724.blogspot.com or call 713-523-2547.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Michael Brims: Saturday, December 4, 8-10pm


Gallery 1724 presents: Michael Brims’ “Return to Candyland”

The opening reception will be Saturday, December 4, at Gallery 1724 from 8pm to 10pm. The exhibit will run until January 31, 2011.

Michael Brims, featured artist at The Kenmore for FotoFest 2010 Biennial, delivers sweet, new photographs and videos called “Return to Candyland.”

Exhibit contact: Tim Deason, 713-523-2547

About Gallery 1724: Gallery 1724 is a d.i.y. contemporary art salon offering rotating, experimental art exhibits and performances since 2005. The venue is located in the Houston Museum District at 1724 Bissonnet St. (between Dunlavy and Woodhead), Houston, Texas 77005. For more information, please visit: www.gallery1724.blogspot.com or call 713-523-2547.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Extensions! What's next?

Both Isaac Powell's and Smitty Regula's exhibitions have been extended until Saturday, November 20, 2010!


Up next:

Michael Brims
and
Fidel Ordonez

Unfortunately, Fidel Ordonez will not be able to exhibit at this time afterall, but we hope he can in the future.

Both opening on Saturday, December 4 from 8-10pm.

"If the story is good..." Smitty Regula exhibition review by Natali Leduc

(note: all the quotes are taken from Smitty Regula's writing.)

If the story is good...

In his New Works currently on view at Gallery 1724, Smitty Regula is showing a series of reproductions that he made of shrines previously made between 1953 and 1983 by Joseph Buttle (1920-1983). According to the official story, Joseph Buttle, a door-to-door salesman, created ShrineCo. in 1953. "Following the design revolution of appliances of the 1950's," his shrines were meant to ease the worship process at home, the same way an appliance was meant to reduce the load of house chores. The Portable Instant Automatic Sacrifice "burned its offering at the touch of a button" while the Worship Accelerator allowed its user to reduce the time spent worshipping without altering the quality of the worship. There was also the 40 Gallon Praise Tank, the Instant Shrine (just add water), the Praise Wheel with Automatic Protruding Strobe, the Oscillating Transistor Praise Wheel, etc., each of which had its own worshipping purpose. The Portable Instant Automatic Sacrifice on view at Gallery 1724 is said to be the original one made by Buttle that Regula would have won in an auction. The show is complete with an Homage to Buttle, made by Regula, the Infinite Loop shrine made by Icky and Feaser ("Joseph's envious distant second cousins who sought to be a part of ShrineCo" but who got rejected), and a Portable Diagnostic Multi-Shrine Calibrator, which allowed Buttle to service any of his shrines.

At the opening, a little man in a suit and tie introduced himself as Joseph Buttle, handing out his card to every visitor... but Joseph Buttle is said to have died in 1983. Who was this man then? An impostor?



The beginnings are far fetched: shrines as appliances short-circuit the personal stamina found in homemade shrines (although one could argue that Buttle's shrines were also made "to suit" their owners' worshipping particularities). Add to this the idea of presenting replicas of such shrines and we are looking at a dubious situation, let alone the presence of Joseph Buttle... But dismissing this experience as a farce would be foregoing a meaningful commentary about authenticity, religion, consumerism, storytelling, and plain simple clean fun.

The question of authenticity is not fully exposed yet. We learn that Joseph Buttle never existed, at least in our "reality," and we further learn that Smitty Regula is a pseudonym for Drew Bettge. Oddly enough, as we plunge into ShrineCo's universe, this Drew Bettge appears to be less real than Joseph Buttle, towards whom the whole attention is geared. Bettge is invisible in the work and Regula's trace as one who pays an homage to Joseph Buttle could not be more humble and removed from the heat of the lights.

The viewer understands quickly that the narrative is just as important as the shrines. They are intertwined in such a way that one gives life to the other. Without the story, the shrines would solely be beautiful functional sculptures pleasant to look at and fun to interact with. Being made of appliance parts (water heater tanks, irons, coffee machine, etc.), they surely refer to appliances. At the push of a button, fake snow comes flying on your head, a horn plays, or coffee brews... But without the story, the shrines would lack an overall cohesion. The story gives them the status of artifacts. They become consumer goods that testify for a past that never existed. Yet, this past is given a semblance of truth through the physical reality of the shrines. The installation itself plays a role in this process. The walls of Gallery 1724 are not the typical white gallery walls but slats of wood, referring a house rather than a gallery. The signs describing the shrines are printed on plain paper, glued to construction paper. Other signs encouraging the visitors to push buttons are simply handwritten with a marker on pieces of torn cardboard boxes. What some would call "neglect" in the presentation brings the shrines outside of a traditional understanding of fine art. As viewers, we found ourselves in front of a similar situation as if looking at Duchamp's Fountain: but instead of seeking the "art" in an urinal, we are trying to forget the "art" of the shrines to see them as consumer goods, because it is as such that they fully gain a meaning and engage in our delight.

In the midst of falsehood, we still have the tendency to believe the story because it is a good explanation for the presence of the shrines today in a gallery. It functions like a myth: although imaginary, it contains a certain truth. The narrative is entertaining, humorous. Yet, even with its intricate exaggeration and its caricatured characters it is still believable. The story of the businessman with a novel idea, the ups and downs of the trade, the obsession with consumer goods and religion, all are parts of a collective imaginary, an American myth. The attention paid to details, and a tone as objective as possible tend to mislead the viewer into thinking that the story unfolding before his eyes is based on reality. If the story is good...

Monday, September 13, 2010

Isaac Powell: September 25 through November 6, 2010


Isaac Powell
Opening: Saturday, September 25 from 8pm to 10pm
through November 6, 2010

Powell's art making process is based upon the conflict and the problem solving of visual equations. Typically, he sets up problems for himself; these oppositions can pertain to the subject matter of the piece or could be conceptual or formal. Often, throughout the development of the work, collisions happen between many different types of problems. Powell finds that in the process, vitality happens when he is able to solve both the organic and the self-imposed visual equations at the same time. Often, the image retains the leftover residue, and the important visual trajectories of the initial problem or equation. This visual evidence is necessary to activate the work.

A secondary conflict Powell feels compelled to deal with is that of his own physical 'handicap'. It is important that he displaces this physical handicap by creating highly crafted hand made supports and structures for his paintings and drawings.

About Isaac Powell:
Isaac Powell is a recent graduate of the MFA program at Washington State University who now teaches Painting and Drawing at Eastern Kentucky University. Powell interweaves the themes of life, growth, reproduction, and creativity with those of his own personal history in his still life depictions and topographic reproductions. Having been born without a right hand, the flora in his work directly references the body, its appendages and digits. By addressing his own anxieties through the imagery of plant cuttings and graftings, he has developed his own vocabulary for confronting both awkwardness and beauty.

To see more of his artwork, please visit: www.isaacpowell.com

Venue info:
Gallery 1724
1724 Bissonnet St.
Houston, Texas 77005
713-582-1198

Smitty Regula: September 25 through November 6, 2010


Smitty Regula
Opening Saturday, September 25 from 8pm to 10pm.
through November 6, 2010.

Following the design revolution of appliances of the 1950’s, Joseph Buttle, a dreamer and schemer, created ShrineCo. in 1953. His dream was to make worship easier and more efficient, and sell this door to door. He did this with his patented shrines, a shrine for any icon, belief, or denomination of religion. Regula, eagerly following in Buttle’s footsteps has researched and carefully reproduced in his own artistic interpretation replicas of only a hand full of the hundreds of shrines Buttle produced and sold.

About Smitty Regula:
Smitty Regula was born in 1976, grew up, and has had many unsuccessful endeavors in his life. He started off quite a while ago informing the public about identity theft from major corporations. Smitty then joined a cult who tried to remanufacture the idea of American consumerism. After this he pushed “grind”, a failed street drug. Regula is presently attempting to follow in the footsteps of “Joseph Buttle” by selling custom shrines door to door. Now Regula drives a chicken.

To learn more about Smitty visit: www.smittyregula.com
Venue info:
Gallery 1724
1724 Bissonnet St.
Houston, Texas 77005
713-582-1198

Wash Day


Wash is a performance about cleansing, ritual and intimacy. A full day at Gallery 1724 in Houston, Texas was devoted to the washing of hair including anointing with oils. There were twenty participants and numerous observers. It was a nicely paced day of washing and talking. During Wash, conversations included memories of September 11, 2001, memories of having their hair washed by their mothers, and the love and pampering of having their hair washed by someone else. We also discussed comparisons to foot washing and baptism, vulnerability, and the intimacy of touch, particularly to the head.

The performance was documented through photographs and sound.




Above photo courtesy of Dean Liscum and Sophie Simons.


Photos courtesy of: Heather Korb, Dean Liscum, Merilee Minshew, Sophie Simons, and Emily Sloan.

Floor before, with foils...

Floor after, foils with imprint from traffic...

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Emily Sloan: Wash---one day only, September 11, 2010

Wash is a one day performance of the washing of hair. Wash will be performed by Emily Sloan and the participating audience. Recent performance work by Sloan includes Napping Affects Performance, an ongoing project including performances inspired by/while napping which launched at Art League Houston this past May 2010. Sloan also organized this summer's "Salon des Refusés", an exhibition of artworks rejected from Lawndale Art Center's "The BIG Show."

Wash will take place on Saturday, September 11, 2010 from 9am to 5pm at Gallery 1724, 1724 Bissonnet St. (between Dunlay and Woodhead), Houston, Texas, 77005.

“It is the ritual situation which makes the hair “powerful”, not the hair which makes the ritual powerful.” --E. R. Leach

This event is free and open to the public.


Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Matthew Glover: Knitted Nudes


Opening: Saturday, August 14, 8pm to 10pm, through September 18, 2010.

The idea of Femininity is traditionally three-fold: Maiden, Mother, and Matron. In this body of work Glover attempts to use signals of each so as to unify them in the mind of the viewer into one vision of woman.

The subject matter, the female nude, falls into a tradition at least as old as the written word. In the setting of an Art Gallery, encountering an image of the female nude brings back the works of past ages, thus echoing the wisdom of the Matron figure as one of humanity's elders.

The medium, knitting, is archetypically a skill passed down from mother to daughter. By using a medium that has an assumed gender of the creator, and is, for the most part, viewed as motherly, the Mother aspect of femininity is folded into the work.

Using black and white images at first harkens to an older era, though the black and white image is, in itself, timeless. Infusing a small bit of colour into the image suggests an emerging nature and identity, that of the Maiden.

It is necessary to universalize the subject though. Each subject is acknowledged by name in the title of the piece, but the intentional low resolution of the finished piece allows the viewer to fill in the details of appearance. The models sought range the entire scope of womanhood, Matron to Maiden, Curvy to Thin. Thus the whole series, when viewed, reinforces the whole.

Melanie Jamison: Index For The Molecular Inevitable

Opening: Saturday, August 14, 8pm to 10pm, through September 18, 2010.

Melanie Jamison observes concepts of singularity through experimental music. She builds sonic indexes of field recordings, found sound, and improvised material which are then treated as an informational database. From these aural reserves, she creates textural layers of sonic collage and integrate the final compositions into multidisciplinary settings for performance and listening.

“Index For The Molecular Inevitable” addresses the recent discovery of a Tiger Electronics Talkboy corroded by a decade of battery acid. Her solution for this loss: a tricked out motorcycle helmet should transport to compositions of retro cassette tape excerpts. This visceral installation should facilitate the elemental components of destination, intention, memory, and the solitary experience.

"Index For The Molecular Inevitable" can be found in the bathroom behind the bookcase.

Bio:

Melanie Jamison is an aesthetician certified by the SuperColliding Introspective Review. She recently graduated from the Illustration program at Parsons School of Design. As a student in New York, Jamison studied Indian classical vocal training in the Kirana tradition with La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela. She now independently composes electronic music and participates as an experimental vocalist and sound texture contributor as a member of the female improvisational band last referred to as Pear Prickley Pear.

Salon pics

Monday, August 2, 2010

Last week of the "Salon des Refusés" and Pick-up info.

This is the last week of the "Salon des Refusés." The exhibition will be on view through this Saturday, August 7, 2010.

Artwork pick-up reminder for artists:

Sunday, August 8 from 1pm to 4pm
and
Monday, August 9 from 4pm to 8pm

Thank you all! We have loved hosting this event!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Looking at Art

Wednesday, July 14, Victoria and Marshall Lightman's "Looking at Art" group visited the "Salon des Refusés."

Looking at art...


Talking with Carol Scott...


Listening to Doug Cason...

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Salon des Refusés

"Salon des Refusés" is a exhibition featuring artwork rejected from Lawndale Art Center's The BIG Show 2010. The exhibition will be on view at Gallery 1724, 1724 Bissonnet St. (between Dunlavy and Woodhead), Houston, Texas 77005 from July 9 through August 7, 2010.

Bonnie Blue's Women Who Rock Art Car!

Below: Salon entrance.





Janet Hassinger and her artwork.










All images courtesy of Emily Sloan.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Salon des Refusés---opening Friday, July 9, 8pm-10pm

Please join Gallery 1724 for "Salon des Refusés" opening Friday, July
9, from 8pm-10pm. The exhibition will close August 7.

"Salon des Refusés" is an exhibition of artworks rejected from the Big
Show 2010 at Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main St., Houston, Texas 77002.
The BIG Show will be opening the same evening from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.

A special thanks to all participating artists!

Fariba Abedin
Melinda Ainsworth
Joel A. Bender, Jr.
Bonnie Blue
Deborah Bright
Will Brooks
Greg Budwine
Douglas Cason
Vachu Chilakamarri
Gabriel Craig
Hillary Cumberworth
Anthony Day
Ronald Dykes
Jennifer M. Dunn
Bill Fester
Jeff Forster
Reema Forster
Helena Gijsbers van Wijk
Stephanie Guajardo
Rachel Robertson Harmeyer
Janet Hassinger
Sarah Hazel
Jane B. Honovich
Cynthia Hoyt
Cecilia Johnson
John M. Linden II
Carrie Marbello
Caroline Z. Marcos
Laura "Mic" McAllister
Van McFarland
Edgar Meza
Merilee Minshew
Deborah Moore
John Nichols
Richard Nix
Annette K. Palmer
Donna E. Perkins
Chasity Porter
Valerie Powell
Preetika Rajgariah
Gilbert Ruiz Jr.
Steve Ruth
Mitch Samuels "Grystar"
Charlie Jean Sartwelle
Louise Schlachter
Carol Scott
Rachel K. Skov
Emily Sloan
Karen Smith
Madilyn Stein
Marie-Pierre Stien
Texas Pizza
Cookie Wells
Tangerine Williams
Sally Worthington
Julie Zarate
Zepeda



Regular hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11am to 6pm. Stop
by, or call 713-582-1198 for an appointment.

Drop-off for Salon des Refusés---Monday, June 28 and Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Mary's sign.


The gallery parking lot! Reporter Virginia Billeaud Anderson was on hand interviewing artists as they dropped-off their artworks.



Signing in...



A pizza was delivered?


Even the pizza delivery artist had to sign the waiver!


Art...


More art...

Friday, May 21, 2010

Announcing: Salon des Refusés, call for artwork rejected from The Big Show 2010 !


Salon des Refusés—call for artworks rejected from Lawndale Art Center’s The Big Show 2010.

Details:

*must be an artwork rejected from Lawndale Art Center’s The Big Show 2010 (present The Big Show entry label)

*one entry per artist

*Location: Gallery 1724, 1724 Bissonnet (between Dunlavy and Woodhead), Houston, TX 77005 (www.gallery1724.blogspot.com).

*Delivery times and dates: Monday, June 28, 4pm-9pm and Tuesday, June 29, 4pm-6pm.

*Exhibition dates: Friday, July 9 through Saturday, August 7, 2010

*Note: Artwork may be turned away due to size and available space.

*No juror

*No prizes

*Free to enter!

For additional information, contact Emily Sloan at 713-582-1198 or emily@emilysloan.com

Thank you!

“Salon des Refusés" will open Friday, July 9, from 8pm-10pm at Gallery 1724 located at 1724 Bissonnet (between Dunlavy and Woodhead), Houston, Texas 77005. The exhibition will close August 7. "Salon des Refusés" is an exhibition of artworks rejected from the Big Show 2010 at Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main St., Houston, Texas 77002.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Monday, April 26, 2010

Lane Hagood: Old Book Smell

Opening Saturday, May 8, 8-10pm

through Saturday, June 19



Above image: Diseased Writer

from Lane:
“Old Book Smell” is a show of a group of drawings that reflect my interest in the lives of thinkers and books. Philosophers, poets, writers, artists and bohemian wanderers are what obsess me. I tend to romanticize these people and spend most of my free time sifting through bookstores looking for books chronicling the lives of these restless souls. The book as an object is something that I think of all the time. I love holding a book in my hands and digging my nose deep into its contours attempting to escape into a world that once was. To me a book is like a mask. It conceals the world and all of the monotony that everyday life brings. A book takes me away into another world where I dwell with my idols and listen to the wisdom of my heroes.

To see more of Lane's artwork, please visit:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yar
http://rippedosaurusflex.blogspot.com/
http://sketchklubb.com/

Sarah G. Sharp: Family Crests for the Disenfranchised

Opening Saturday, May 8, 8-10pm

through Saturday, June 19



From Sarah:
Whether by force or by choice, whether on the outside of a large family or a small town, there is a symbiotic relationship between the dominant culture and the edge-dwellers of any group. Every group of insiders needs a group of “outsiders” in order to define itself. Somewhere in the space between acceptance and rejection lies a complicated liminality where dogmatic group think, seductive/mythic language, and hidden motivations can be revealed. I make sculpture, drawings and video that explore the construction and expression of individual belief systems, often scripted by a larger “community.”

My recent work draws on vernacular architecture, analog communication structures, and the inspirational landscape imagery to address the magical thinking required to maintain strict belief structures in the face of contradiction and improbability. A current series, Family Crests for the Disenfranchised, imagines heraldic imagery for outsider. I often use domestic materials like contact paper, linoleum, aluminum tape and salt, which I transform into images and objects that are familiar, funny and fantastical.

To see more of Sarah's artwork, please visit:
http://www.sarahgsharp.net

Monday, March 15, 2010

FOTOFEST: In the Beginning...William Winker / Hayden Fosdick


In the beginning...A William Winkler / Hayden Fosdick Collaboration

Opening reception: Saturday, March 20, 8-10pm

Gallery hours: 11am to 6pm, Tuesday through Saturday
through April 25

Appointments recommended. Please call: 713-582-1198.

For more information, please visit: http://www.williamwinklerphotographs.com


(Above image courtesy of William Winkler and Hayden Fosdick.)

Friday, March 12, 2010

Farewell to Rosebud...

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorrow will be dying.
---Robert Herrick



Our dear chicken Rosebud passed away Thursday afternoon, March 11, 2010. Tim and Rosebud are pictured above.



Rosebud and Rita.




Rosebud at an opening being carried around after a broken toe. Smitty Regula, creator of the Hen-a-tron, watches in the background.




Rosebud and friends.


Photos courtesy of Mary Scheible of Click Photography and Emily Sloan.