Temporal Surfaces

Description

White Walls is pleased to present Temporal Surfaces, an exhibition guest-curated by
Lainya Magaña that will feature the work of Kevin Cyr and Jessica Hess. Please join us
for the opening reception on Saturday, February 6th, 2010, from 7-11pm.

Temporal Surfaces points to the relationship between space and time by uniting the
individual perspectives of two artists separately exploring decay and abandonment in
urban environments. The result is a body of work documenting the transitory nature of
the contemporary urban American landscape, lauding these decrepit, graffiti laden, and
often overlooked scenes as reverential places of beauty.

Working with photographs for inspiration and reference, Hessʼs exquisitely rendered oil
paintings depict industrial sites and their graffiti-covered surfaces with keen attention to
light and color. In the style of portraiture, Cyrʼs detailed paintings of derelict service
vehicles, bombed with graffiti, are commemorated as the workhorses of a car culture
society.

Painting in a historical style akin to ʻmodernʼ rather than ʻclassicalʼ landscape painting,
both artistsʼ works are aesthetically realized, allowing for a visual experience that
accounts for ephemeral beauty without being idealized or contrived. Hess and Cyr
contemporize and push the boundaries of landscape painting by documenting the
worldly and fleeting nature of urban structures; giving a deserved place of permanence
to surfaces destined for change.

KEVIN CYR was born in Edmundston, NB, Canada, in 1976 and grew up in the paper
mill town of Madawaska, Maine. Cyr received his BFA from Massachusetts College of
Art in Boston and now lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. His work has been
exhibited nationally and internationally, and has been published widely.

JESSICA HESS was born in Massachusetts and raised in North Carolina. Hess received
her BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2003. Her work has
been exhibited throughout the US, resides in the A.G. Rosen collection, and has
received numerous awards. Hess currently lives and works in Boston, MA.

The opening reception of Temporal Surfaces at White Walls Gallery will be held on Saturday, March 6th, 2010 from 7-11pm. The exhibit will be on display through March
27th, 2010 and is open to the public.