Baang and Burne Contemporary is pleased to present Second Nature
Meditations on a Peaceful Apocalypse. Artists Kris Graves and Karen Rudd Offer a Vision of Outrage, Reflection and Hope.
Landscape, nature, ecology, an environmental issues have long been a powerful source of inspiration for contemporary artists. In the third exhibition of Baang and Burne Contemporary’s six-week art event, titled “6x6”, the artwork presented manages to address all of these contemporary issues with uncommon beauty and grace, without ever becoming preachy or didactic.
In Second Nature, artists Kris Graves and Karen Rudd present a vision that is simultaneously apocalyptic and hopeful. Graves presents a series of hauntingly sublime photographs of the Icelandic landscape that enable the viewer to reconsider their relationship to the earth. Likewise, Rudd’s strikingly realistic sculptures of life-size cedar tree stumps created from reclaimed cardboard and wood glue express sadness and irony, but also the serene idea that nature is somehow restoring itself.
About Kris Graves
Kris Graves creates photographs that preserve memory.The stillness in his images calls attention to the inevitability of change and the passage of time. While each image is a record of a precise moment or state, Graves works to suspend and sustain that moment rather than capture or document it. Kris Graves received his BFA from SUNY Purchase in 2004. His work has been exhibited at Farmani Gallery, Contemporary Art Center of Virginia, and Hous Projects in New York City.
About Karen Rudd
As a visual artist with a background in zoology, Rudd explores the relationship between man and nature through sculpture by returning the man-made materials to their original organic form. Since 2005 she has created landscape-like indoor installations that are a commentary on consumerism and natural resource use. Rudd studied sculpture atPratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle, Washington. She has received fellowships from The Vermont studio Center, Oregon State Historical Society, and Earthwatch/Ford Motor Company. Her work is also included in the permanent collection of Oregon State University.
Second Nature will be on display from September 22 through September 28. Gallery hours are Monday to Saturday 12-6 PM, or other times by appointment.
For further inquiries, please e-mail: contact@baangandburne.com or call 646-926-6408. You can visit the gallery online at www.baangandburne.com andwww.6x6NYC.com