Side by Side: Larry Bell and Gabriel Dawe
July 15, 2016 – October 16, 2016
Artists Reception: Friday August 19, 2016 at 7pm
Conversation with the artists at 7:15
Side by Side is an exhibition that juxtaposes the work of two artists who work with similar materials or in a parallel context. The work of both Larry Bell and Gabriel Dawe utilize the most minimal of materials with the available light and architecture of a space to effectually engage the viewer in a thoughtful, reflective experience. Having the work of these two artists in proximity to one another provides a unique context where a dialog across materials, content, and time can be experienced by the viewer.
In his work, Larry Bell (born 1939) investigates the properties of light on surfaces. Early in his career, the surfaces he employed most often were glass and paper. He purchased his first large vacuum chamber in 1967 and began coating glass and other materials with thin metallic films. Though his work is most often associated with the Light and Space movement and West Coast Minimalism (born in the 1960s of Southern California) he is continually pursuing new interplays of light, surface, and material. Most recently, he has been applying vaporized metallic particles to Mylar, cutting the material, and looping it into iridescent Light Knots that are suspended, seemingly weightless, reflecting light with each slight shift in space. Other works included in this exhibition are vapor drawings and two-dimensional collaged compositions of materials that have been coated with vaporized metallic particles. These collages, called Church Studies, change when viewed at different angles and light conditions. Larry Bell has exhibited his work internationally, and his work is included in every major American museum collection, as well as many important museum collections abroad.
Gabriel Dawe (born 1973), originally from Mexico City, now lives and works in Dallas, Texas. His work is textile based and aims to examine the complicated construction of gender and identity, as well as attempt to subvert notions of masculinity and machismo. In his work, Dawe also explores the connection between fashion and architecture along with the human need for shelter. His work has been exhibited widely in the US, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and the UK. Dawe’s Plexus A1 was recently included in the exhibition Wonder that celebrated the reopening of the renovated Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. At AMoA, Dawe has installed Plexus 33, which is a work from his ongoing Plexus series of temporary site-specific installations of sewing thread. This installation is located throughout AMoA’s more than 30 foot high central atrium space, and required approximately 35 miles of thread. Dawe’s process involves stretching thousands of individual strands of thread; overlapping, intertwining, and effectively providing a unique sensory experience and visual perception of light, space, form, and architecture. In addition to Plexus 33, this Side by Side exhibition includes drawings and relics from previous Plexus installations.
Gabriel Dawe Plexus 33 is supported in part by an award from Mid-America Arts Alliance, the National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Commission on the Arts, and foundation, corporations and individuals throughout Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas. AMoA Alliance is an additional sponsor.
Larry Bell is supported by Paul and Claire Burney, H.C. Brillhart, Mary Alice Gibner, Dale Fitz and Chai Hong-Kuah.
Side By Side: Larry Bell and Gabriel Dawe is funded by Amarillo Convention and Visitors Council Arts Committee and Dr. Kent Roberts and Ilene Roberts Balliett Foundation.
Click here to see a video of Gabriel Dawe's installation, Plexus No. 33.
