Solace at Paul Mahder Gallery
It feels a little unreal to have an art show in the midst of a pandemic, fires and Healdsburg area evacuation warnings, social unrest, and hopefully political change. There’s a lot going on these days. For those of you unable to see my show, Bill Shelley made this 7-minute walk-through video:
If you'd like to see this new work in person, it’s at Paul Mahder Gallery in Healdsburg through 18 October 2020. The name of the show is Solace, which is something I think we all need these days. I also think solace can be found in art. I hope my show can offer that for you.
Paul Mahder Gallery •222 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg, CA •Thursday - Monday 10AM - 6PM
Opening Reception: So, with a pandemic and fire evacuations, Paul and Chris agreed, it was the “Weirdest Opening Ever”. But it was good and I was glad to see my work hung in the gallery and happy to talk with the people who came by. I hadn’t talked that much in months, my voice was a little raw the next day.
Artworks in the show:
Promotional Videos:
About the Work
It feels a little unreal to have an art show in the midst of a pandemic, fires and evacuation warnings, social unrest, and hopefully political change.
Between shelter-in-place orders and social distancing I spend a lot more time in the studio. I work until my arms and hands are inflamed and aching. I find myself wondering just what the hell I am doing as I obsessively create and complete the sculptural works for this show, Solace. But I don’t know what else to do that feels as true.
Spanning pre-pandemic time to now-pandemic time, these works encompass a variety of materials and methods. Some look more like bone, ivory, or stone — symbolizing the passage of time and its effect on our memories. Others experiment with opacity and chaos, and appear different depending on where you stand. Newer works investigate optical effects to offer different perspectives and reflect back upon the viewer.
I question the function that art serves during these unprecedented times of social revolution and deadly disease. I wonder what my role is as an artist. Is it to comment directly on current events? Is it to keep working the same way as yesterday to maintain a sense of inner calm and continuity? Or perhaps, it is to let in as much of the world as I can (just a tiny introverted sliver, but overwhelmingly plenty), respond to it as truly as I can, and share what I have created with the hope of touching others in a meaningful way.
This is what I have tried to do. And so here is Solace.
-Chris Beards August 2020