Craft Alliance in the Loop: Friday, 10 September 2010

Matt Wilt, Orwell, Mixed Media, 2010

Matt Wilt: Trials and Errors
Exhibition probes the ever changing boundaries between the natural and the synthetic world

September 10 – October 31
FREE Opening Reception on Friday, September 10, 6-8pm
Gallery Hours: Tuesday–Thursday, 10am–5pm; Friday-Saturday, 10am–6 pm, Sunday, 11am–5pm. Closed Monday.

In the exhibition Wilt explores the body and its uneasy union with the artificial or mechanical. “Symbolic forms that I find particularly compelling include the hand and objects used as surrogates for the body: bottle nipples, respirator bags, sex toys, prosthetics,” said Wilt. “The hand exemplifies the human presence, while the other objects, to varying degrees, distance us from the most human of activities. These forms, as manufactured objects replicating natural functions, act as substitutes for nature. I find this composite of the physical body and the synthetic world simultaneously fascinating and frightening. “

The title, Trials and Errors, is Wilt’s homage to all people involved in processes that require skill and analysis along with an equal measure of faith and risk. “I admire scientists and artists who imagine seemingly outlandish hypotheses and still have the courage to pursue their possibilities,” said Wilt. “With a material like clay, trial and error is a fundamental way to experiment and learn. It can sometimes be heartbreaking and often joyous. This exhibition will be a culmination of ideas and decisions based on risk, faith and hope.”

Opening concurrently at the Charak Gallery is the exhibition Playing Around, featuring the work of Corey Ackelmire and Nathan Dube. Both artists work in metals and put a spin on the design and function of everyday objects. “This work alters the forms and functions of familiar objects for the purpose of subverting my viewer’s expectations of those objects,” said Ackelmire. “I hope to make the viewer question often overlooked aspects of the objects that surround us: aspects which include function, design and the emotional resonance of both.”

Craft Alliance in the Delmar Loop
6640 Delmar Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63130
www.craftalliance.org
(314) 725-1177