“We don’t see people as they are. We see people as we are.”
Perception is skewed. Of course, intellectually, we understand this, and yet we move through our days quietly ignoring that we see the world through our own lens. Everything we encounter gets filtered and processed to reflect the comfortable narrative in which we all live. No one – perhaps save a very few, though I could not say for certain – escapes this subjective way of thinking. Even as I write this, I am aware that these thoughts, these words spill from my own personal experiences and will reach you in yours.
Nicholas Hatfull recently chatted with us about, among other things, his exhibition, Shades, which runs until June 18 at Dracula’s Revenge in NYC. The title sprang from a Takeshi Kitano film, and initially, Hatfull considered calling the show Shades of Kitano to allude to the way in which others’ work influences us. Ultimately, he shortened to just Shades, which globalizes the concept of influence. To hear more about the show and more, listen to the complete interview.
Ted Gahl sat down with us to discuss his recent exhibition, Le Goon, which closed on February 18 at Harkawik Gallery. The title speaks to both the idea of one who is a goon and is perhaps a play on “lagoon” as well as hinting at a word frequently used in hip-hop. The show comprised small and quite large works, which were painted on unstretched drop cloth. This eliminated the issue of storing unsold works, that can be easily rolled up and put away because they are not created on stretchers. To hear more about the physical process of this exhibition and the work therein, listen to the complete interview.
A few words to keep in your pocket
In a way, we each live on a separate timeline in our own universe.
Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android, please click here. All weekly essay pieces in a shareable format are here. The full archive of interviews is here.
Books to Read
What are you reading? Add your titles to our reading list here. Nicholas Hatfull recommends Death by Landscape by Elvia Wilk.
Deadlines:
Cuttyhunk Island Art Residency invites artists to apply for their 2023 fall residency program. Up to 12 artists will use the island itself as their studio. Artists will “welcome nature into their practice” on this small island off the coast of Massachusetts. For more information and to apply, visit the website. Deadline is June 1.
Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis for Aesthetics. He has written six books for artists, most recently Making it in the Art World.
Very thoughtful Brainard, thanks!