THE GOOD
FIGHT
Brooklyn
College MFA Thesis Show, Spring 2019
601Artspace,
88 Eldridge Street
May 18th -
May 25th, 2019
In partnership with The Department of Art at Brooklyn College CUNY, 601Artspace hosted the Brooklyn College MFA Thesis Exhibition, curated by our director, Sara Shaoul.
A panel discussion featuring Sharon Louden, Maia Cruz Palileo and Hrag Vartanian was held on Wednesday, May 22nd from 6-8pm.
Listen to the panel discussion:
Silin Bei
Lybi Cucurullo
Azuki Furuya
Jackson Hendrix
Jess Hoyt
Isaac Moylan
Io Okazaki
Irina Rodnikoff
Fay Sanders
Bob Szantyr
Christine Lee Tyler
Celeste Wilson
Curators Statement:
There are seven classic forms of narrative conflict in literature, which despite their exclusionary and outdated language, still resonate: man versus man, man versus himself, man versus nature, fate, machine, society. As I consider the diverse set of artworks and practices of the Brooklyn College thesis class of 2019, I find myself recalling these foundational themes. Every artist seems to be doing battle in the ring with a nemesis of some sort, from societal to personal to existential.
Conceptual artist Mel Chin once said that artworks can be “lamentations” for the world, made so that one can go on existing in it. This sentiment feels present in each artist’s attempt to challenge an unmanageable force, to push back against threats simultaneously individual and universal. As every day another wheel falls off the proverbial bus of our existence, artists react, willingly or unwillingly, aggressively or quietly, to their world being under siege. In this group of artists, the response to threat is a visual attempt to assert some form of control - whether by protest, pushback, or the creation of an alternative reality.
Image: Jackson Hendrix, Negative Entropy, 2018. Acrylic and wax pastel on paper, 22" x 30". Courtesy of the artist.
88 Eldridge St. New York, NY 10002
Tel: 212-243-2735
Open Thurs-Sun 1-6pm
© 601Artspace, 2018