Opening reception: Thursday, March 27, 2008 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
ClampArt is proud to present "New Works on Paper," an exhibition of abstract photographs by Romanian-born artist, Ion Zupcu. This is the photographer's second show at the gallery.
Zupcu employs the simplest of means. Manipulating black sheets of paper, he creates small sculptural objects that he shoots in straightforward studio light. However, the results as far from obvious. As Jan Staller writes in the accompanying catalogue: "With disarming economy, Zupcu employs the sparest of materials and techniques to break down the expected three-dimensional illusion of photographic space." He continues, "Zupcu's work calls to mind the early 20th century abstract photographs of Man Ray and Laszlo Moholy-Nagy. While their photographs involved graphic arrangements, Zupcu pushes his investigations into spatial illusion."
Many of the artist's newest pieces take on a whimsical tone with titles that clue the viewer in to some of his inspirations. One work echoes an Andy Warhol flower painting by simply arranging a few curls of paper. Another nods to Frank Stella's geometric abstractions with the simple placement of a series of folded paper sheets.
The exhibition is accompanied by the release of a limited-edition catalogue with an essay by Jan Staller (Softcover, 52 pages, $20).
Jeannette Montgomery Barron Vintage Portraits from the 1980s
March 27 - April 26, 2008
Opening reception: Thursday, March 27, 2008 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
ClampArt is pleased to present an exhibition of vintage photographs by artist, Jeannette Montgomery Barron. Montgomery Barron began taking portraits of artists in 1982, starting with Francesco Clemente. From there she photographed other such notable artists as Andy Warhol, Dennis Hopper, Jean Michel Basquiat, and William Burroughs.
It is impossible to ignore the intimacy of Montgomery Barron's images. Her beautiful use of natural light in combination with her uncanny ability for putting her subjects at ease, make for stunning and poetic documents of the most significant culture makers of an entire era. The exhibition is accompanied by the release of a unique, unbound catalogue of reproductions of sixteen of the artist's best portraits, including Julian Schnabel, Robert Mapplethorpe, Keith Haring, and Cindy Sherman.
A number of monographs of Montgomery Barron's photographs have been published over the years, and her work is included in the collections of the High Museum of Art, Atlanta; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art; amongst others.
