Art Relish

Here’s a (very) quick glance at the opening reception for Benita Carr’s “Morning Sun” at Whitespace last night. The show runs through Feb. 18. Allison Rentz also did a performance.

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“Morning Sun” is an evolution in Benita Carr’s work that explores the mother/child relationship and the meaning of self within the domestic social structure of home and family. Constructed as narrative tableaus, the photographs depict women and their children in scenes that evoke emotions of desire, doubt and anxiety.

Carr’s photographs and videos are informed by the ways in which womanhood and motherhood have been seen, understood and lived across time, especially their representation in art, religion, advertising and family pictures. These themes coupled with the style and symbolism of Mid-Victorian images of interiors and feminine subjects inspire her body of work. Moving into video and sound challenges the form of traditional portraiture and allows other layers of meaning and complexity to surface.

The title of the series Morning Sun is a play on words and lends itself to various interpretations. While reminiscent of the overly sentimental language inherent in greeting cards, other connotations invoke feelings of loss and despair.

Carr is the recipient of many awards and grants including a 2002 Artist in Communities Initiative Grant that consisted of a collaboration on a photographic installation with women who had suffered severe spinal cord injuries and the Joyce Elaine Grant Award from Texas Women’s University in 2004. She exhibited the Infinity Project, a symbolic commentary on the endless cycles of violence created with her husband artist Evan Levy, at the Tate Modern in 2007. Her photographs were also included in the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center 2005 Biennial, the Huntsville Museum of Art 2005 Triennial and in 2009 at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. Her work is part of the permanent collection of The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia.

Through Feb. 18.

Whitespace
814 Edgewood Avenue
Atlanta, GA

Get This! Gallery presents the solo exhibition, SYNTHESIZ by Atlanta based artist Ben “Bean” Worley. This is Bean’s second solo exhibition with GT! The exhibition features new video work as well as prints based on stills from the featured videos.

The exhibition will also include a series of evening performances throughout the duration of the show. These will include music performances, DJ/parties and performance art events in which Bean will be doing live video mixing and projections to accompany the invited performers.

SYNTHESIZ fuses the binary roles of his personal and professional life with the historical precedent of film and art. Worley contextualizes his formal artistic training within a pop cultural experience that combines video, music and performance, transforming the analog materials he gathers into a contemporary digital medium. The transformative elements of Worley’s videos translate into the nature of the exhibit as a whole. The gallery will continually shift between both a formal viewing space and a music and events venue with every component synthesizing to create a unified visual experience giving the participant a view into the multifaceted nature of Worley’s work and background.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS/PERFORMANCES

All events to be held at Get This! Gallery during the exhibition.

• Opening reception: Friday, November 11, 7-11 p.m.
• Performance by Cole Alexander (Black Lips), Thursday, November 17, 7:30-10 p.m.
• Performance by CARNIVORES, Thursday, December 15, 7:30-10 p.m.
• Artist talk: Saturday, December 17, 1-2 p.m. (during Westside Arts 3rd Sat Art Walk)
• Closing Reception/Party: Performance by LYONNAIS, Saturday, January 7, 7-10 p.m.

Through January 7.

Get This! Gallery
662 11th. Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30318