Matt Henry: Flatline
7 September - 3 October 09
Starkwhite is pleased to present
Flatline by Matt Henry from 6 September to 3 October
2009.
In his last show at Starkwhite Henry
assembled a small grouping of paintings and sculptures reflecting
his interest in art, design and consumerism. Installed in two
galleries, each the mirror image of the other, the exhibition
played on the notion of the doppelgänger, exploring the formal
similarities and interconnectedness of art and design through the
minimalist aesthetic. He activated slippages between formalism,
non-objective art and design in order to examine notions of value
and function within these disparate contexts, at the same time
confronting viewers with work that evoked a strange and slightly
alienating sense of familiarity.
The title of his second exhibition,
Flatline, has a slightly ambiguous ring to it
that could reference 'death' (as envisaged in Rodchenko
monochromes, Malevich's 'zero of form' or void), or conversely a
range of 'slim-line' designer appliances/ flat screen
televisions.
Henry sees the function of the title and the pairing of these
particular works in the exhibition as a conduit, creating a kind of
juncture between the end games (or openings) of early 20th century
art/painting, and an opening out of paintings' function in the
world. He says: "These works focus on the juncture that was art's
internal discourse, and the connotative values imbedded, evidenced
(or not) by design in its use of the minimalist idiom. I think this
simple pairing stages a snapshot of a range of techniques, which
tease out or test questions regarding the 'aura' of the artwork and
production values. I see these devices or techniques as tools that
affect transpositions between high/low, highlighting flows between
these disparate contexts."
Matt Henry graduated from Melbourne's
RMIT University with an MFA in 2008. Recent solo shows and
representation in group/thematic exhibitions include:
Fahrenheit, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth
(2009); Doppelgänger,
Starkwhite (2009); Living Together, Michael
Hirschfeld Gallery, City Gallery Wellington (2007); Activating
Korea, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth (2007);
Mostly Harmless: a performance series, Govett-Brewster Art
Gallery, New Plymouth (2006); View, Govett-Brewster Art
Gallery, New Plymouth (2004); and Bloom, High Street
Project, Christchurch (2004).
Located in New Zealand on Auckland's
Karangahape Road, Starkwhite presents a
programme of artists' projects, solo shows, independently curated
exhibitions and occasional forays into new music and other
interdisciplinary practices. Starkwhite also represents artists
from New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific rim.
Please contact the gallery for further
information on the exhibition and images.
Starkwhite
510 Karangahape Road, Auckland, New Zealand
Tel. +64 9 3070703
Monday to Friday: 11.00am to 6.00pm
Saturday: 11.00am to 5.00pm
starkwhite@starkwhite.co.nz
www.starkwhite.co.nz
www.starkwhite.blogspot.com
