Exhibit on view through February 11.

Ultisols [uhl-tuh-sawls, -sols] a highly weathered leached red or reddish-yellow acid soil with a clay-rich B horizon (subsoil).

bluetan collective:

Joseph O’Neal
Brandon Fonville
Joe Strasser
Geoff Henshall
Steve Chellis
We as artists have a conscious and visceral bond to the environmental surroundings of our youth. This connection knowingly/unknowingly still affects our use of color, composition, and at times the overall language of our work. Ultisols represents that place where nature and nurture meet, acting as a metaphorical idea of where the conscious mind meets the innate or subconscious mind.

We see the act of creating as an excavation of the meta/pataphysical ether in an attempt to uncover personal and universal meaning. The works are tokens from this excavation; i.e. an archeologist bringing a bone back to the lab. In this case the bone (our work) is not the object of desire but rather an invitation for the viewer to embark on their own excavational journey.

This unearthing manifests itself in an array of distinct expressions throughout our collective: Geoff Henshall’s reflections on youth, love and friendship; Brandon Fonville’s photographs emphasizing place and change in a growing city; Joseph O’Neal’s poetic non-objective forms and wordplay; Joe Strasser’s urgent application of material; And the ambiguous tauntings of Steve Chellis’ paintings and drawings. These brief examples articulate Ultisols: the exposed soil meeting the air; mirroring the artists’ inner excavations coming to fruition. Though varied in intent and outcome, as a whole the work in this exhibition is effective in its ability to translate the myriad of experiences of our varied group in the light of a connected reality.

Reception: Saturday, January 17, 7 – 10PM
Exhibit on view through February 11.

Also on View-
27 Mix: Raisa Nosova

This event is sponsored by our neighbors at Kilkenny AleHouse and 27 Mix