Participating artists: Lana Duong, James Gilbert, Jenalee Harmon, Megan Mueller, Jenny Rask, Nicolas Shake, Katya Usvitsky, and May Wilson

Curated by Sean Noyce

Noysky Projects presents A Narrow Passage, a multidisciplinary exhibition that explores themes of constriction, compression, and concealment as a way to relate to personal biographies.

Abstract works from A Narrow Passage are comprised of materials that twist, turn, bond, choke, or smother to the point of collapse, while others have approached constriction in a more gratifying way, like the comforting sensation of a warm embrace or the euphoric feeling of pleasure derived from pain.

Artists have used the compression of space as a visual device to relate to the body for thousands of years. Ancient Egyptians wrapped the body in ornate sheaths that accentuated the unique forms of the individual, while providing familiar biographical landmarks to aid the spirit in its journey to the afterlife. Shibari, a form of Japanese rope bondage developed during the Edo period, was used as a decorative device to display captive prisoners like trophies, creating complex patterns and shapes that pressed into the skin. Twentieth-Century works from Man Ray and Christo & Jeanne-Claude have used concealment as a means to invoke mystery, transformation, and revelation, while Eva Hesse and Jackie Winsor put the body back into abstraction, using hands-on processes and tactile materials that actively rejected the detached qualities of the minimalists.

Many of the works in A Narrow Passage employ elements of playfulness with form while acknowledging the weight and density of the artist’s chosen materials. Some of the works in A Narrow Passage relate to the quirks of the body, straddling the line between fragility and rigidity, using irregular, organic forms. Others have used tension to reveal internal conflict, illuminating our efforts to adapt to our new political realities while also protecting the ideas we cherish most.

Moreover, the works in A Narrow Passage touch on core tenets of materialism: the theory that all objects are alive because of their capacity to make a difference in the world, influencing each other in a complex web of interrelationships. These works can be seen as a bridge between animate and inanimate objects, combining to produce effects that are both dramatic and subtle.

Exhibition Images

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On view: October 14 – November 12, 2017

Opening reception: Saturday, October 14, 3-6pm

Hours: Thursday-Saturday, 12–6pm, and by appointment

Public transportation: Red Line to Hollywood/Highland. Walk 2 blocks east.

Parking: 2 hour validated parking at Hollywood & Highland Center: 1768 N. Highland Ave ($2); 1618 N. Las Palmas Ave ($10); 1520 N. McCadden Pl ($7); or street parking in vicinity ($2 per hour)