Truth and Fiction
Two shows use visual projections that suggest a story or maybe don’t. Plus, plenty of suggestions for this weekend's Gallery Night.
Who are these people? That may be a lingering question after seeing the current exhibition at Inova, Enacting Acting. Three artists present seven video and mixed media works, each with a distinct sense of tension at their core. The sources of tension vary, from the self-absorbed varieties of panic explored by Robert Arndt to the conscious, conscientious movements and glances of figures sliding through Alix Pearlstein’s pieces, to the probing questions and dialogue of Vishal Jugdeo.
The artists have produced pieces using actors, whom we see onscreen, employing the conventions of theatrical presentation but stripped of what we’d normally expect to see, some narrative context. Each vignette lands us in a place where we might not be sure of motivations, and all that’s left is the actions and reactions of the actors. As described by Inova director Sarah Krajewski, “an actor relies on a craft that, when executed skillfully and successfully, disappears from our conscious perception.” The exhibition relies on the fact that we are highly conditioned to believe what we see on screen, to buy into the reality of the actor’s art which itself is a concoction of fantasy. These works play with our expectations: rather than seeing a film where we absorb a story and identify with the characters before us, we’re instead left to fixate on raw scraps of reaction. The gaping holes of storyline are there to be filled in, but that component is ancillary to the faces and gestures onscreen.
A few blocks away at Green Gallery, Gavin Brown is showing an untitled video installation with similarly oblique tactics. The walls are white and the plate glass windows are boarded up to create an austere surface. The architecture of the gallery is nowhere near a cube, which works to the benefit of this piece. One projection beams steadily on a wall while another projection circles the room, each capturing the changing scene of the modest interior of a home. The most notable components of this piece are not necessarily the visuals but the sounds — blaring, growling, mechanical tones and piercing, siren-like shrill pulses enter and leave, as do the occasionally subdued rhythms and low-key whispering voices. If you are not into experimental sounds it might be very demanding at times, but that is part of the point, unnerving sharpness juxtaposed against hushed domestic views. The soundtrack is what you could imagine if the refrigerator noise, hum of HVAC, or electric pulses in the walls were magnified to sonic dissonance. Then, without warning, a female voice, sobbing and mournful, at times intelligible, is heard at the end of the piece. Questions arise. Have we been inside this woman’s head all along?
Both The Green Gallery (1500 N. Farwell Ave.) and inova (2155 N. Prospect Ave.) have limited hours during Gallery Night And Day. Inova’s hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 12 to 5pm, with extended hours on Thursdays until 8pm. Green Gallery is open Thursdays from 4 to 8pm, Friday through Sunday from 2 to 6pm.
This Weekend: Gallery Night And Day Highlights:
Pfister Artist in Residence Finalists
One of the major events taking place during this weekend’s Gallery Night is the display of work by the six finalists for the next Pfister Artist in Residence. Work by Richard Dorbin, Niki Johnson, Brandon Minga, Dena Nord, Jeff Redmond, and Stacey Williams-Ng will be on view at Gallerie M in the InterContential Hotel, and viewers will be able to vote for their choice of artist through the Pfister Hotel Facebook page. The winner will receive a one-year residency at the Pfister Hotel, succeeding the current Pfister AiR, Stephanie Barenz. The exhibition is open Friday from 5 to 9pm and Saturday throughout the day. Voting for the winner continues through February 14.
As is the tradition with each Gallery Night there are plenty of openings of interest around town. The full list of participants can be found on the Historic Third Ward website but here are some highlights:
DOWNTOWN
Oil Paintings by Ernesto Gutierrez
1024 E. State Street.
Friday 5 to 9pm, Saturday 11am to 5pm
The exhibition features intense paintings by Gutierrez who is described as the best Peruvian artist living today.
Bare Walls
450 E. Mason Street
Friday 5:30 to 8:30pm, Saturday 9am to 1pm
The nude figure is the connecting subject in works by Wisconsin artists as well as internationally recognized painters and sculptors.
Sonja Thomsen: Glowing Wavelengths In Between
759 N. Water Street
Friday 6 to 9pm, Saturday
Photography and installations are on view by Milwaukee-based artist Sonja Thomsen.
Transitions in Perspective: Myth and Mirror
1422 N. 4th Street
Friday 6 to 9pm, Saturday 10am to 3pm
THIRD WARD
Jeremy Popelka: Veiled Monuments
Rodger Bechtold: The Nature of Things
Ben Grant: I’ve Gotten on With it a Little all the Same
233 N. Milwaukee Street
Friday 11am to 9pm, Saturday 11am to 4pm
The Marshall Building (207 E. Buffalo Street) is a perennial Gallery Night favorite with multiple floors of galleries and events.
Marshall Building, Lower Level
Friday 5 to 9pm, Saturday 12 to 4pm
Group exhibition featuring painting, sculpture, installation, and music.
Six Women: Allison B. Cooke, Rebecca Crowell, Kay Knight, Paula Schulze, Stacey Steinberg, and Jean White
Marshall Building, First Floor
Friday, 5 to 9pm, Saturday reception 1 to 3pm
Focus on Fiber
Marshall Building, First Floor
Friday, 6 to 9pm, Saturday 10am to 5pm
Population: Robin Luther
Marshall Building, Second Floor
Friday 5 to 9pm, Saturday 12 to 4pm
Certificates of Presence: Vivian Maier, Livija Patikne, J. Lindemann
Winter Chapel by Ashley Morgan
Marshall Building, Fifth Floor
Friday 6 to 9pm, Saturday noon to 5pm
WALKER’S POINT
CoPA’s 7th Annual Midwest Juried Photo Exhibition
Featured Member Exhibition: Paul Matzner
Walker’s Point Center for the Arts
839 S. 5th Street
Friday 5 to 9pm, Saturday 12 to 5pm
Inova’s hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 12 to 5pm, with extended hours on Thursdays until 8pm. Green Gallery is open Thursdays from 4 to 8pm, Friday through Sunday from 2 to 6pm.
Art
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Winning Artists Works on Display
May 30th, 2024 by Annie Raab -
5 Huge Rainbow Arcs Coming To Downtown
Apr 29th, 2024 by Jeramey Jannene -
Exhibit Tells Story of Vietnam War Resistors in the Military
Mar 29th, 2024 by Bill Christofferson
Guides
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13 Ways to Celebrate New Year’s
Dec 28th, 2022 by Sophie Bolich -
Guide to Downer Ave.
Dec 4th, 2018 by Zach Komassa -
Guide to S. 5th Street
Sep 18th, 2018 by Zach Komassa
Art Date
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Apocalypse Now
May 30th, 2014 by Kat Murrell -
Slower Than a New York Minute
May 16th, 2014 by Kat Murrell -
Easy Rider
May 9th, 2014 by Kat Murrell
Thank you for these Gallery Night suggestions. I went to three places on your list, plus a lecture on Winston, a photographer who had images of the old steam trains at the Grohmann Museum, which was also excellent and inspiring! Later the curator of Grohmann himself (who’d also done the lecture)walked around the exhibit answering questions, and I was able to speak to him directly.
Thanks Kat!