Summer 07, WM #4: Summer Group Show -- Inside/Out @ Jonathan Shorr Gallery

Jonathan Shorr Gallery
109 Crosby Street
New York, NY 10012
jonathanshorrgallery.com

Reviewed by Jemma Jorel

 The Jonathon Shorr Summer Group Show, appropriately titled "Inside/Out", commenced to a curiously pleasant evening on the 26th of July. The show consisted of an impressive variety of contemporary painting, sculpture, pen & ink, projected media, and an odd clan of mimes. As I approached, it's eclectic attendees had already spilled comfortably onto Crosby Street to watch a video projection above the gallery sign. The two level space is laid out quite intimately, featuring forty pieces from about sixteen different artists. 
 
 While not the only strange sight I happened upon, a sculpture by Andréa Stanislav entitled, "Silence", was certainly the first non-living constituent that captured my attention. Two greyhounds stand on opposing drum pedestals, completely encrusted in sparkling black glitter, crucifix charms dangling from their anal regions and bowed heads covered together in a black garbage bag. The curator of the show, Jessica Barr, described a somewhat frenzied installation (the sculptures arriving earlier that day) and marveled that the hidden faces of the animals were even more intricately adorned than the visible body. This lends to the irony of the title, "Silence", and stark humor of the absolutely dazzling piece. Symmetry, or at least dualism, seems to be a consistent theme in Stanislav's art, along with a mockery of tradition and the ever irresistible intrigue of sparkle.

 Notable as well was the series by Jordan Eagles. There were four unframed pieces of a uniform aesthetic made of blood preserved on White plexiglass with resin UV coating. The unusual media created an fervent contrast of the composition, strengthened by the variation in opacity and richness. The glossy surface made the morbid technique accessible, ultimately appealing more to the intellect than the eye, but by no means detracting from the striking beauty.

 Outside, some graceful older gentlemen lounged on leather loveseats while the mimes performed a quirky love scene. A screen lit up above the door, framing the silhouette of a Latin mandolin musician expressively swaying to his song. A silver clad mime with a hoop skirt skeleton stared stoically past me to the darkening sky. The throng of people crowding the street and irritating delivery vans seemed content with the oddity that was the Jonathon Shorr Gallery, and I'd quite like to attend the next opening.