A R E A presents Cancel Your Plans: Virtual Opening [04/03/20]

A R E A Gallery presents Cancel Your Plans: New Paintings by Cal Rice

Please join us from your mobile devices for a "Virtual" Opening on First Friday (April 3, 4PM). Live on Facebook and Instagram:

https://www.facebook.com/areaartgallery/
https://www.instagram.com/area.gallery/

"Real" Opening: TBD

On view until May 24th

Drawing from the traditions of Surrealism, Rice calls upon his distrust of logic and love of the absurd to provide a commentary on our society at large. While his work is filtered through the lens of his own experiences, he conveys a set of uncanny themes that will resonate with anyone concerned for the state of our world. Confusion, curiosity and a sense of foreboding are regular motifs in his work. Further, Rice relies heavily on his use of personal symbolism as a means to engage the viewer. His use of familiar, yet uncanny, imagery challenges the viewer to come away with their own interpretations.

Preferring not to work from reference, Rice tends to create paintings working only from his imagination. Usually using a small sketch as a jumping off point, the scenes created in his works are formed without premeditation. Using this same organic method of creating, Rice formed his most recent, and aptly titled exhibition “Cancel Your Plans.”

In this show Rice illustrates a world marked by a sense of disorder. However, while no two works are completely cohesive, it is clear that they are all existing within the same universe. Impossible scenes depicting distorted subjects convey a set of unclear themes. Though, it is this very ambiguity that is at the crux of this exhibition.

Rice perceives that as a society we are living in a state of entropy, confusedly advancing towards an unknown destination. Though, this understanding of the world may sound bleak it should be noted that these works are not meant to invoke a sense of dread. Rather, only to convey the confusion Rice feels towards his own experience. To that end, contrasting the more ominous elements of this show are inklings of cheer. Between the cartoonish, or the use of bright pastel-like colors it is clear that buried within this strange world there is still a strong undercurrent of humor.

About Cal Rice:

Cal Rice grew up between Western Massachusetts and Upstate New York. After receiving his Bachelor's in Fine Arts from the School of Visual Arts in 2011, Rice spent several years working as a professional tattoo artist. In 2018, Cal graduated from the School of Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts with a Masters of Fine Arts. Currently, he is a working artist residing in Boston, Massachusetts.

About A R E A:

A R E A is a contemporary art gallery, active in both the primary and secondary markets. We showcase local and international artists and designers. Through multiple spaces and formats, we combine gallery exhibitions with interactive and engaging experiences.

Build your art collection at https://www.constructionarea.gallery/

A R E A presents Cancel Your Plans: Virtual Opening

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