AC Press Release
ALEXANDER CHURCHILL | UNCANNY VALLEY
JUL/30 - OCT/1, 2016
1793 EAST MAIN ST
VENTURA, CA 93001
T 805 626 8876
HOURS: WED–SAT 1-5PM
ALEXANDER CHURCHILL, Amylase of the Uncanny Valley, 2013, oil on canvas, 60" x 36"
Opening Reception | Saturday, July 30, 2016 | 7-10PM | RSVP
Pleased to present UNCANNY VALLEY, a solo exhibition of 30 paintings by Alexander Churchill at H Gallery. These large-scale paintings burst with energy and precision, yet mystify with their complex permutations and combinations of figurative and surreal elements. Alexander will be present for the opening reception, making his west coast debut.
These canvases string together compositional elements of image and texture paradoxically, with an uncanny level of exactitude into a wealth of smooth, vivid detail. Images are manipulated and interwoven into volatile phantasmagorias of color and form. In these spectacular pictorial inventions brightly colored blocks and perfectly rendered figures slice through multiple layers, which reject any attempt by the eye to find a resting place.
Churchill also returns to a theme many artists explore throughout their careers, the self-portrait. Art is often about the artist confronting himself and Churchill consciously picks up on this, fusing his images into an extremely personal mythology, while at the same time commenting on issues of tradition, imagination, and the significance of antiquity and modernity. The fashion in which Churchill depicts himself is exaggerated or misshapen, transmuting between human and not.
Moving through various conceptual constructs including the contemporary, the banal and the heavenly, his work evolves from its literal beginnings into visceral manifestations that dazzle the eye and confound the senses. UNCANNY VALLEY exposes basic human vulnerabilities while embracing visual aesthetics. By embracing an unconventional middle, Churchill ultimately transports the viewer to from the surreal to the familiar and traditional, sanctioning the contemplation and deliberation of his works.
Alexander Churchill was born in San Diego California and raised in Vermont. He earned a Bachelors degree in Fine Art from Green Mountain College in 2008. Alexander now resides in Connecticut and his work has been widely exhibited throughout the Eastern United States. Recent exhibitions include "Surreal Salon", Group exhibition, Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA (2016), "Outside Influence", Group Exhibition, Treo Gallery, New Orleans, LA (2015), "Intelligent Objects: Empathetic and Smart Art", Juried Exhibition, Hilles Gallery, New Haven, Ct (2015), "Wide Open 6", Juried Exhibition, Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, Brooklyn, NY (2015), “International Fine Art Exhibition”, Agora Gallery, New York, NY (2014), "Not so Still Life", Group Exhibition Southport Galleries, Southport, Ct (2014)
Curated by Yessíca Torres