Garden Party, new works by Casey Gray

Description

White Walls is pleased to present Garden Party, new works by Casey Gray. This will be the artist’s third solo exhibition with the gallery and will consist of selections from three distinct bodies of work, with the main focus centered on Casey’s exploration of 17th century Flemish still life painting. Also included for the first time will be a new series of abstract geometric “spectrum” paintings as well as vividly colorful collages made from skateboard grip tape. The opening reception will be Saturday, October 6th, from 7-11pm, and is free and open to the public for viewing through November 5th, 2012.

Working exclusively with acrylic spray paint, Casey Gray has developed an approach to painting that is uniquely his own through innovative, hand-drawn stencil techniques. With Garden Party, the artist wields these techniques in over forty new works on panel to explore the dichotomy of painting historically traditional subject matter with very contemporary, non-traditional materials such as spray paint and the Xacto knife. The artist creates each still life painting from a large palette of images originally accessed from the Internet. He then removes elements from each, whether a lobster, a vase or a piece of fruit, to compose new digital still lifes that are later referenced for the final paintings. By selecting chosen pieces of the digital empire and using them as building blocks for his paintings, Casey turns images from digital space into tangible objects that depict a hypothetical reality. The dislocation of these images from their original context is vital to Casey’s investigation into the amorphous role tradition plays in the increasingly globalized nature of contemporary art and culture.

While Garden Party bypasses the more edifying quality of most Flemish still lifes, some standard Vanitas symbols like skulls, dripping candles, drooping blossoms and fallen petals are present to remind the viewer of the temporality of nature. The bright blooms and lush variety seen in the floral still lifes of painters such as Ambrosias Bosschaert, Jan Brueghel the Elder, and Balthasar van der Ast, shine in Casey’s work, revitalized with a pop sensibility of neon colors and layered pattern work.

The artist’s goals shift in a more introspective direction with the spectrum paintings and grip tape series. Rhythmic, geometric patterns are used to bring a visual life to feelings of euphoria and nostalgia inspired by electronic music and skateboarding. With twelve to twenty color fades in each, the spectrum paintings ebb and flow in waves of optical bewilderment, providing a place for contemplation and reflection. The grip tape collages are a result of Casey’s desire to venture outside his normal painting practice and reconnect with his skateboarding roots. In these highly textured and optical works, simple linear patterns are created through a meditative, repetitious process, cutting and placing each individual strip by hand. The emotional and physical sensations of setting up a new deck are translated into a piece of fine art, with the process being virtually identical.

Garden Party brings together the much-loved stylistic talent Casey has made his name on, with new developments to reveal an even wider scope of the creative capabilities and original vision we can expect from him.

Casey Gray is a San Francisco based artist working primarily with spray paint. His desire is to create a visual language that explores the fluidity of personal experience that is the contemporary digital landscape, as well as to investigate the role of tradition in today’s globalized culture. After studying painting and printmaking at SDSU, Gray went on to the San Francisco Art Institute where he received his MFA in painting in 2010. Gray’s work recently graced the cover of Chinatown Newspaper and has been published in The San Francisco Chronicle as well as the upcoming issue of New American Paintings #103. His work has been featured in cities both internationally and nationally including London, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Portland, Baltimore and Miami.


White Walls Gallery has worked for nearly a decade to exist as the premiere destination for urban art in the Bay Area. Combined with the Shooting Gallery just next door, this 4,000 sq. ft. space is one of the largest galleries on the west coast. Justin Giarla founded the gallery in 2005 with a commitment to furthering the urban art movement, drawing directly from street art and graffiti culture. Named for its plain white walls, the gallery takes a backseat to the real focus: the work of our artists.

Media Opportunities:
Interview with Casey Gray
Interview with owner/founder/curator Justin Giarla
High-resolution images available upon request

Event Information:
Garden Party by Casey Gray
Opening Reception – Saturday, October 6th, 7-11 pm
On View Through November 5th, 2012
@ White Walls (www.whitewallssf.com)
835 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA

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