College of Visual and Performing Arts
Organized by mr. and mrs. amani olu
May 23–27, 2012
Opening: Thursday, May 24, 6–8pm
Dumbo Arts Center
111 Front Street, Suite 212
Brooklyn, New York
Syracuse University and Dumbo Arts Center (DAC) will present Welcome to Tomorrow, a group exhibition by 2012 master of fine arts degree candidates in SU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, May 23–27 at DAC, 111 Front Street, Suite 212, Brooklyn. The show is free and open to the public. A reception will be held Thursday, May 24, from 6–8pm. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday–Sunday, 12–6pm.
The organizer for Welcome to Tomorrow is known as mr. and mrs. amani olu. The exhibition includes a diverse presentation of traditional and contemporary media, including painting, ceramics, photography, interactive and experimental sculpture, video, and conceptual installations.
Exhibiting artists include Maximilian Bauer, Lauren Boldon, J.S. Jin Choi, Rose Marie Cromwell, Zach Dunn, Michael Giannattasio, Eugénie Michelle Giasson, Holland Houdek, Tessa J. Kennedy, Kyoungju Kim, Jay Muhlin, Yiming Nie, Vasilios Papaioannu, Annie Ryerson, James Stevens, Jennifer Turner, Rachel Van Pelt, Claire Ying-Chin Wang, Jennifer Leigh Wright, Elif Yöney, Jave Yoshimoto and Xiaowen Zhu.
Welcome to Tomorrow examines artistic production within the confines of M.F.A. programs and the anticipated reception of said work by the public. If critical acclaim and art world acceptance are end games for graduate students, then questions regarding artistic intent, art market influences, institutional expectations, and peer pressure become prominent concerns in contextualizing the work in thesis exhibitions. In simpler terms, what is the viewer to make of art made under these conditions and how does this affect (if at all) the work presented?
The terms on which the 22 artists in this exhibition negotiate these concerns vary. In Bauer’s work, sculptural objects bring into focus the multilayered apparatus through which consciousness is transformed into understanding by constructing a closed system that invites the viewer to consider their perceived environment. Kennedy’s work embodies the dual categories of jewelry and sculpture. The vernacular photography of Muhlin often cites images casually encountered in daily or domestic life. Papaioannu employs multiple moving image technologies, ranging from 16mm film to high-definition video, to suggest the manifold states of human consciousness. Van Pelt’s paintings suggest different forms of light abstracted in a variety of ways.
amani olu (b. 1980) is an independent curator, writer, essayist, and co-founder and executive director of Humble Arts Foundation, a New York-based 501c3 committed to supporting and promoting new art photography. He is producer, designer, and co-curator of The Collector’s Guide to New Art Photography Vol. 2, published by Humble. In addition to his work as a non-profit arts director, he also organizes the annual Young Curators, New Ideas exhibition. His 2012 curatorial projects include Young Curators, New Ideas IV at Meulensteen; Small Works at Magenta Foundation’s Flash Forward Festival in Boston; and The Invisible Line, a solo presentation by artist Ellen Jong at Allegra LaViola.
olu’s projects have been reviewed and featured in such publications as the New York Times, the New Yorker, ARTnews, Time Out New York, Code, and am New York, as well as online at Art in America, Bomblog, Cool Hunting, Daily Serving, and Flavorwire. He recently penned the catalog essay for SU’s Welcome to Tomorrow and for Herald, Rashaad Newsome’s debut exhibition at Marlborough Chelsea. His writing includes interviews with William Eggleston and Gottfried Helnwein and profiles on K8 Hardy, Elad Lassry, Newsome, and David Benjamin Sherry. He lives and works in New York and is a member of New Art Dealers Alliance (NADA).
For more information about the exhibition, contact olu at 646 330 1039 or [email protected].
