ATHICA EMERGES VII

JULY 12th – August 24th, 2014

Our annual exhibition featuring local, emerging artists. Curated by Ted Kuhn + Tatiana Veneruso. Opening reception July 12th, 2014 6-8 PM

Featured Artists:

Addison Adams

Gabriel Cymerman-Bird

Jordana Dale

Jason Matherly

Christopher Nelms

Jason Sokolic

+ Athens, GA

 

Events:

7/17 Third Thursday: Performance + Poetry 7-9pm

8/2 Surfacing: The Art of Body Painting organized by Melissa Biel 7-9pm

8/17 Childrens Workshop: TBA 2:30-4:30pm

8/24 Closing Reception 4-6pm

 

Sponsored by:

AOC Twilight • Athens Ford • Todd Emily • Puffin Foundation • FCA • ACC • Jason Berstein/Athens Ga Homes • Smokey Road Press • The Fresh Market • The Willson Center • Bel Jean • Earth Fare • Little Prodigies • Flagpole

 

For the past 7 years, ATHICA has dedicated its annual summer exhibition to local, up-and-coming artists. This year, in addition to showcasing 6 compelling and innovative creators, we want to display Athens itself. Athens, GA is such a singular place: relatively small in size but big on creativity. Through events, satellite exhibits and a roaming video feed with pop-up viewing lounge, Emerges VII will give a new view of Athens!

 

This year’s Emerges is curated by local multi-media artist, Ted Kuhn and ATHICA’s new Director, Tatiana Veneruso. Kuhn, an Athens native, earned his BFA from UGA in 2012 and will soon be departing to San Francisco to earn his MFA. “I’m curious about what else is out there. And by there, I’m mean Athens” says Kuhn. Drawing from his practice as a performer, Kuhn’s choices for Emerges intend to display and engage Athens for itself.

 

Veneruso, took over as ATHICA’s Director in early 2014 and is continuing our mission of promoting and supporting innovative contemporary art in Athens, GA and has curated and organized several shows at ATHICA since 2011. Veneruso chose artists whose work in the past year or so has stood out amongst the many. Some have been featured in ATHICA’s larger group shows but most have yet to be part of an exhibit of this kind.

 

Kuhn and Veneruso have collaborated on past ATHICA events, most recently INTERIOR/EXTERIOR: Nocturne (a performance-based event in conjunction with our spring exhibit, Vespucci’s INTERIOR/EXTERIOR: Structural Constellations). The idea of Kuhn and Veneruso co-curating Emerges VII was initially proposed by ATHICA’s previous Artistic Director, Hope Hilton in summer of 2013 when Veneruso was then serving as Hilton’s assistant/gallery manager.

 

Addison Adams was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received his BFA in painting and drawing from the Lamar Dodd School of Art in 2012, and has since continued developing his work in painting as well as his experimentation with sculpture, installation, and performance. He has performed at the High Museum of Art, the Goat Farm Arts Center, and MINT gallery in Atlanta, Georgia, and has exhibited his paintings throughout the Southeast.

 

Gabriel Cymerman-Bird is a local craftsman who doesn’t even really see himself as an artist. Cymerman-Bird has been creating LED light sculptures for the past few years, evolving into larger and more complex works. He had 2 small light pieces in last year’s CONTENT show, which featured over 70 artists from around the world.

 

Jordana Dale is a recent graduate of the University of Georgia, currently residing in Athens, Ga. She uses digital, 35mm and 4×5 large format film, as well as many formats of instant film in her work. “I create self narratives using models to portray memories or feelings from my past. The aesthetic of these portraits is contemporary and minimalist. They elicit the stoic and awkward emotions of my melancholia.”

 

Jason Matherly works primarily in painting, drawing and collage. He is largely concerned with using contour and color to push the viewer’s eye out to and around the edges of his works. Matherly was a co-founder of the Cunny Isle Bemusement Park, a collaborative studio devoted to visual arts, poetry, criticism and performance, which operated from 2010-2013. He lives in Athens, GA.

 

Christopher Nelms writes, draws, paints, performs, eat, sleeps, reads, repetitively.  He lives in Athens, Ga. He has worked collaboratively with both Kuhn and Matherly.

 

Jason Sokolic is a fine art undergraduate at the University of Georgia, graduating in December of this year. Sokolic’s work shows a deep infatuation with futuristic synthetic materials. Subject matter is likely to be ephemeral and nonspecific as ideas are pulled from semiconscious impressions, thoughts, impulses, and experiences. His forms are often grotesque but retain a sense of humor.

 

Athens, GA…perhaps more muse than artist…but certainly a work of art in its own right. By creating an interactive viewing experience involving remote locations throughout the Classic City, we will be able to see our town from different perspectives and even make some new friends in the process.

Press:

Flagpole Magazine

Athens Banner-Herald