Poems inspired by "Dark Matter"

Local extemporaneous poet BRASH visited the gallery during the closing celebration for our recent show, "Dark Matter," and created two poems inspired by Ellyn Weiss's work.

Alchemistry
To Ellyn Weiss’ Lost Continent


The luminous bowl
That is the skull
Scoops the elixir of thought
From the synaptic clot
Of emotion,
Transmutes its graygold matter
Of alchemic fits and starts
Into the wordless patter
Of the heart’s Impatient motion.

© October 17/21, 2009, BRASH


Dreams
To Ellyn Weiss’ Cladocera


At night the brain
Uncouples itself from its mooring
Follows its own bright train
Through the wilderness, seeking, touring,
A restless conductor’s scoring.

At night the brain derails
From crisply ordered thought
To follow the wisp of trails
Unbound, unbordered, hot
With organic combustion wrought.

At night the brain cracks
Free of relentless time’s elapse,
Leaves the faintest spoor of tracks
On the crackled surface that maps
The sharpest etchings of synapse.

Oh to leave behind the shoddy
Hovel of durance mater, — why but for a night? —
To ever escape this grim and earthen body
For the burn of passages deep and bright
Dark and pure as anthracite.

© October 17/21, 2009, BRASH

Talk with Ellyn Weiss

Saturday afternoon Ellyn Weiss stopped by to share with a curious audience the story behind her new collection of works, "Dark Matter."


The talk became an interactive show-and-tell session when those in attendance sat in a makeshift circle passing around old and recent prints, while Weiss explained the progression of her overall oeuvre.

After a short introduction explaining the motivations behind her new work, a dialogue emerged between the artist and her audience. One of the attendants mentioned that these new paintings seem more expressive than her previous work, richer somehow, even though the color palette has been reduced to brown hues and an almost all-encompassing black. The play on texture developed through technique, the application/removal of tar on canvas, gives way to unique paintings; images that appear to be "living things, swimming up from the primeval darkness."

"Dark Matter" will be on exhibit until October 17. A closing reception will be held that Saturday from 3-6pm.

NKG presents...

We are holding two more events to showcase "Dark Matter," Ellyn Weiss's new work in tar!

Please join us this Saturday, October 3 for a talk with the artist between 2-3pm. Weiss will discuss her process of creation, as well as the motivation behind her paintings.

You are also invited to a closing reception on Saturday, October 17, where we will be holding a final celebration between 3-6pm.

Take a look at our newsletter for this and more.

Gallery Hours

Just a short note to let you know about the new gallery schedule. Lately we have cut back on our hours, but that doesn't mean you should avoid stopping by. We are open on Tuesdays and Thursdays through Saturdays, from noon to 6pm, and by appointment.

Remember, our current show featuring works by Ellyn Weiss, "Dark Matter", is up until October 17. We hope to see you soon!

"Dark Matter" shines brightly

The show's opening was a success! I wish I could say the same about the pictures that were taken that night. Let's just say that this will be the last time I mess around with the camera's shutter speed days before an event. Here are some of the better pictures:

Guests downstairs

Downstairs

Ellyn Weiss and two attendees (pardon the blurriness)

Ellyn engaged in conversation

In case you were not able to attend the opening, here are a few more pictures of the art. Make sure you stop by before October 17. These works need to be seen in person to fully appreciate the richness of tones and textures that can be found within them.

Flagellates, 30 x 30, asphalt and shellac on board, 2009

Pseudopodia| Serpentes| Turbellaria

Lost Continent| Cladocera

NKG on Facebook, plus upcoming exhibit

During the past few months, we here at the Nevin Kelly Gallery have made efforts to become a bigger presence in the interactive world of the web. Back in February, we joined Constant Contact for our email updates and created a group on Facebook as well. To follow up, we have now created a page, making it easier to keep you updated about what is happening at the gallery. To become a fan, click on the link below.



What’s to Come
In more exciting news, you will soon be receiving invites for Ellyn Weiss's upcoming solo exhibition, "Dark Matter: New Work in Tar." The show will run from September 17 – October 11 with an Opening Reception on Thursday, September 17, 6 to 9 pm. Here's a preview of the invite and a little snippet from the press release to get you better acquainted with the show.

"Weiss has discovered that tar is not the dull and uniformly black substance it first appears to be. It contains a range of subtle hues—rich browns, subtle grays and warm amber tones. She uses these colors to coax images from the tar. The images are not planned in advance, but reveal themselves as she works.They have an eerily organic quality to them, appearing to the artist like living things “swimming up from the primeval darkness.” They register with us at the most basic level of all, as if triggering a memory we carry in our DNA of the moment life began."