Black Floor is Dead. Long live Black Floor.
This will be the last missive from Black Floor Gallery, though this site may float in the ether of the internet for awhile, this place is no longer active:
Annette Monnier, Carrie Collins, Gerik Forston, Nick Paparone, Elsa Shadley and Jamie Dillon created an "alternative" gallery space and sustained it for three years. In six months the space they signed a lease on had been converted from a grimy garment-pressing facility to a grimy art gallery and studios (with "residences" hidden in the back). The gallery floor was painted black, partly to create a border between the gallery and the rest of the space. The name, Black Floor Gallery, came as the most obvious and sincere solution to the seemingly eternal dilemma of denomination.
The space terminated on March 25th 2007, a date that coincided with the last day of "Locally Localized Gravity" an exhibition that Black Floor was asked by The Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, to participate in. "LLG" served as a way to rapidly summarized all the activities that had taken place in Black Floor during it's three-year history.
Now Black Floor retires to the endless string of defunkt artistic collectives and spaces, and will hopefully be mentioned in the artistic memoirs of our collective future. It is better to burn out than to fade away.
BLACK FLOOR AT THE INSTITUTE OF CONTEMPORAY ART
SEE VIDEO OF OPENING
FRIDAY FERUARY 19TH 6-8 P.M.
SEE MORE PHOTOS HERE
JAPANTHER PLAYING LIVE ON OUR FLOOR AT THE ICA
LOCALLY LOCALIZED GRAVITY (LLG)
BLACK FLOOR IS AT THE INSTITUTE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART
FOR JANUARY, FEBRUARY, AND MARCH OF 2007:
The rumors are true. Black Floor has been displaced
for the next three months. We've taken our show up the
only hill in Philadelphia and pumped our programming
into the ICA.
We're launching our "floor on wheels" at
the opening of LLG on Friday, January 19th. The
opening is from 6 till 8 and this is one party that
is not going to be cool to arrive fashionably late
to. The famed NYC-based band that was all over the
2005 Whitney Biennial, JAPANTHER, is going to play
right at 6. Non-art art rock you'll want to dance to.
Be there or be lame.
That fun just starts the party. We'll be keeping it
real all three months, hosting movie parties on
Sundays, one-day artist exhibitions on Wednesdays and
Saturdays and other surprises such as record swaps,
track-stand competitions, and who knows? Maybe we'll
tail-gate for the Eagles.
OUR PROGRAM (don't worry about memorizing it, we'll be
sending weekly up-dates):
Jan. 19th: Japanther @ 6:00pm
Jan. 21st: Movies @ 12 till 5pm
Jan. 24th: Luren Jenison @ 12 till 8pm
Jan. 27th: Russell Ihrig (Publico Gallery) @ 11 till
5pm
Jan. 28th: Movies @ 12 till 5pm
Jan. 31st: Emily Glaubinger @ 12 till 8pm
Feb. 3rd: David Dunn @ 11 till 5pm
Feb. 4th: Black Floor's Birthday @ 12 till 5pm
Feb. 7th: Beth Heinly @ 12 till 8pm
Feb. 10th: Eric Midget @ 11 till 5pm
Feb. 11th: Movies @ 12 till 5pm
Feb. 14th: Jeffrey Stockbridge @ 12 till 8pm
Feb. 17: Sabrina Lessard @ 11 till 5pm
Feb. 18th: Movies @ 12 till 5pm
Feb. 21st: Annette Monnier @ 12 till 8pm
Black Floor Gallery
Feb. 24th: Nick Paparone @ 11 till 5pm
Feb. 25th: Movies @ 12 till 5pm
Feb. 28th: Alex Da Corte @ 12 till 8pm, with
"party event" at 6
Mar. 3rd: Carrie Collins @ 11 till 5pm with an
unconfirmed lecture by Peter Barberie @ 2.
Mar. 4th: Record Swap @ 11 till 5pm
Mar. 7th: William Pym @ 12 till 8pm
Hullabaloo over Georgie and Bonnie's Pictures
Mar. 10th: Gerik Forston @ 11 till 5pm
Mar. 11th: "Shadow Craft Treasurey" Craft Fair @ 11 till 5pm FREE BEFORE 1pm
Mar. 14th: Elsa Shadely @ open 12 till 8pm
Mar. 17th: Amy Adams @ 11 till 5pm
Mar. 18th: Sue Spaid Lecture "The Gold Fish Test" @
11 till 5pm
with a Track Stand competition "Slow Sunday"2-5pm.
Mar. 21st: Jamie Dillon @ 12 till 8pm
Mar. 24th: Vox Populi @ 11 till 5pm
Mar. 25th: Ben Peterson mini-exhibition 11 till 5pm
The Institute of Contemporary Art is located on the
University of Pennsylvania campus at 118 South 36th
Street (at Sansom), Philadelphia, PA 19104-3289.
Phone: 215.898.7108
Fax: 215.898.5050
ICA Hours
Wednesday through Friday, 12pm - 8pm
Saturday and Sunday, 11am - 5pm
Monday and Tuesday, closed.
LOCALLY LOCALIZED GRAVITY
Black Floor will be at the ICA for the months of January, Febuary, and March for LOCALLY LOCALIZED GRAVITY.
That means no art shows at the Black Floor space for those months--but don't be sad! Just make sure you get to the Institute of Contmeporary Art, Philadelphia on January 19th for the opening, Japanther is playing at 6 and it's really going to be very awe inspiring.
EBAY SHOW
EBAY SHOW
BLACK FLOOR GALLERY
OPENS THIS FRIDAY DECEMBER 1ST 7-11
AFTER THAT BY APPOINTMENT OR ON SUNDAYS 12-3
THESE PEOPLE WILL BUY THINGS OFF OF EBAY AND THE STUFF
THEY BUY WILL BE PUT ON DISPLAY:
Keith Wilkins
Adam Wallacavage
Ben Peterson
Dave Dunn
Katharine Kanarky
Doub Hanshaw
Gerik Forston
Carrie Collins
Elsa Shadely
Carrie Yotter
Jayson Musson
Jason Hsu
Andrew Jeffery Wright
Rose Luardo
Peter Barberie
Juan Angel Chavez
Annette Lee Monnier
Luren Jenison
Nick Paparone
Jamie Dillon
Roland Burns
Mayu Hayashi
Sue Eggen
Mike Frank
Thom Lessner
Callie Rickards
Matt Kosoy
Beth Heinly: Anima
Opening Friday November 3rd, 2006
Opening 7-11
Runs through Nov 26th
gallery hours: Sundays 12-3
or by appointment
As the damsel is often visited at night by the
vampire, so Beth Heinley is haunted nightly by dreams
of Andy Warhol.
The surrealists used their dreams as subject matter
for their paintings. Beth Heinley's paintings are the
subject matter of her dreams. At night she is handed
an instruction manual of what to paint in the morning.
Often she is handed that booklet by Mr. Warhol, but
others, such as Lindsay Lohan, have also played a
part.
This will be Black Floor's first ever show of
paintings (although they are made with magic marker).
Beth is a native Philadelphian, so she says
wudder--not water, but she went to art school in
Cincinnati, Ohio, where they say pop--not soda--then
she moved back to Philadelphia. Her favorite
philospher is Plato.
Vox Populi Victory
Vox Populi: 1315 Cherry St. 4th floor
Sunday Oct 22nd 5PM $10 TO HELP THE GALLERY MOVE
live music by Plastic little, Paper Napkin, The Yah Mos Def, HI SOFT, Golden Brown, DJ Nag Champa, MegaWords.
One Wall Is An Edge Luren Jenison Solo Exhibition
Opening Friday October 6th 7:00-11:00pm
Scheduled to run from Oct 6th to the 28th.
Luren Jenison creates a panoramic installation of landscape and shelter. The space inside becomes a hospitable no-man's land with its own borders.
Gallery Hours
Sundays 12-3p.m.
or by appointment INFO
BLACK FLOOR SALUTES THE ART MARKET (AGAIN)
On Saturday September 9th, from 12-4 pm
all of Philadelphia's best affordable/functional art
producers will converge on Black Floor Gallery and
give you the opportunity to buy a piece of happiness.
Records will spin, tents and booths will appear, and
people will be having a good time.
In short, everything good will be on sale at Black
Floor Gallery so you should come and buy some of it.
If you have no money, come anyways, maybe you can
steal something.
PAPER RAD SAT AUG 5th
PAPER RAD performing live Saturday August 5 8:00pm at Black Floor plus other bands including:
dr. doo
extreme animals
mud boy
fortress of amplitude
plus new videos from the the New Load DVD
Pay to Play Curated by Amy Adams
Black Floor announces the Aug 4th opening of the exhibit Pay to Play from 7 to 11p.m. Curated by Amy Adams. Scheduled to run from Aug 4th to the 27th.
Bribery Infiltrates the Art World
Money Talks Bullshit Walks at Black Floor Gallery in August
Black Floor Gallery welcomes curator, Amy Adams’ project, Pay to Play, an exhibition that satirically incorporates the well-known practice of currying favor with elected officials through bribes and offers of goods and services in order to receive special treatment and influence decision-making. By mimicking the murky back channels of power and influence and imagined smoke filled rooms, the exhibition takes “pay to play” politics out of the usual arenas of government and business and brings them into the gallery to illustrate how too often the few benefit at the expense of the many. The Pay to Play exhibition challenges the public not to simply dismiss these scandals as “business as usual”, but to speak up, vote and demand our elected officials govern effectively and altruistically.
Amidst a host of recent revelations of bribery and corruption, Adams conceived of a show inspired by public figures such as Jack Abramoff, the political lobbyist and Republican activist, who admitted to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe lawmakers and Representative Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-CA) who resigned from Congress after admitting to accepting at least $2.4 million in bribes and pleading guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to commit bribery, mail fraud, wire fraud, and tax evasion.
The artists in the exhibition- Maximillian Lawrence, Charles Hobbs, Lucas Blalock, Denise DeSpirito, Nikki Johnson, Jessica Peavy, Adam Eckstrom, Albo Jeavons, Yngvar Larsen, Scott Andresen, Adam Parker Smith, David Baumflek, Guy Tourangeau, David Rothenberg, Mauro Zamora and Lizz Wasserman address not only political themes of self-interest versus the public good, scandal, failures of democracy, and corruption, but also hypocrisy and larger issues of deception, misrepresentation, privilege and identity. To gain favor and acceptance into the exhibition, the artists offered the curator a host of creative bribes that will be displayed alongside their work.
In late June, Pay to Play was discussed during debate of the Committee on Science, State, Justice, Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act when Representative Jeff Flake (R-AZ) introduced an amendment to strike funding for an organization that had listed this exhibition on its website. Representative Flake commented, “…I am saying it is sadly ironic that we are funding artistic parodies of congressional earmarking with earmarks.”
JAPANTHER this Tuesday July 11
Come see Japanther play at Black Floor this Tuesday July 11 at 8 p.m. ONLY $3
Two-Headed Monster A group show of collaborations curated by Nick Paparone
Black Floor announces the July 7th opening of the exhibit Two-Headed Monster from 7 to 11p.m. with records played by local artists Virgil Marti and Jamie Dillon. Curated by Black Floor's Nick Paparone. Scheduled to run from July 7th to the 29th.
Two-Headed Monster pairs twelve artists to collaborate in the interest of exploring the notions of Utopia. Through collective effort the artists reveal how the dynamics of collaboration make awkwardly interesting things.
Featuring collaborative works by:
Kate Abercrombie and Isaac Resnikoff
Beth Graves and Evan Commander
Luren Jenison and Jamie Dillon
Annette Monnier and Dave Dunn
Paul Coors and Russell Ihrig
Emily Blaskovich and Nathan Parker Smith
Gallery Hours Sunday 12-3 or by
appointment
Bozo Texino
We have a very special screening THIS SUNDAY June 25 of a brand
new experimental documentary from Portland, Oregon filmmaker Bill Daniel.
For over twenty years Bill has been hopping trains with super 8mm and 16mm
cameras trying to find out the history and the meanings behind train-hobo
graffiti tags. The greatest of mysteries being the person responsible for
the tag "Bozo Texino", which is by far the most prolific tag found on
rail-cars all over the United States. The result is a rare and beautiful
film that examines the heart of a fading subculture while fighting the
desire to romanticize its harsher realities. Join us and Bill Daniel for a
special intimate screening at the Black Floor Gallery!
Bill Daniel will be in attendance for Q&A!!
For more info on Bill Daniel and the film check out:
Bill Daniel
SUNDAY June 25th
8:00pm $5.00 smallchangescreenings.com
Who is Bozo Texino?
by Bill Daniel
55 min. black and white, experimental/documentary.
Who is Bozo Texino? is a film on the 100-year-old tradition of hobo and
railworker graffiti. The project is the result of a 20-year study of
“monikers ” and is fabricated from hours of 16mm and super 8 film, most
of it shot on freight trips across the western US. The film includes
interviews with some of the railroad’s greatest graffiti legends:
Colossus of Roads, The Rambler, Herby (RIP) and the granddaddy of them
all, Bozo Texino. The film also catches some of the socioeconomic
history of hobo subculture from its roots after the Civil War to the
present day. Included are interviews with tramps that Daniel
encountered in his travels. The range of the interviews, and the film’s
style deal with both the clichés and the harsh realities of tramp life.
In researching hobo culture Daniel found the written histories fraught
with myth, and was initially frustrated by the apparent lack of
verifiable truth to much of the lore.
“At some point in the research, and in the filming, I had to give up on
the idea of being able to tell every story down to the detail. One of
my initial impulses was to create a highly resolved document that would
allow people in the future to see exactly what this culture was like.
Impossible enough. But at the same time I was painfully aware that to
broadcast these discoveries would alter or wreck the innocence and
freedom that was there. Gradually, I realized that to report on freight
train culture I should just acknowledge this mythologizing that
permeates the culture and adopt that as an essential part of my
approach. But the difficulty was, at the same time, to present this
purely documentary material that I earnestly want to be appreciated and
preserved. And no matter what the disappointment might be in finding the
lonely reality behind a particular myth or graffiti, there is a mystery,
or truth, that will always evade the documentarian and the audience.” -
UNICORNS
Curated by Caitlin Kuhwald and Brielle Duym
Featuring the work of:
Kris Chau
Tim Gough
Hawk Krall
Lisel Ashlock
Heather Morton
Jayson Musson
Damian Weinkrantz
Adrienne Mano
Heather Jo Wingate
Linda Smyth
Ralph Stolenwerk w/ Mouth
Michael Wirley
Alex Decorte
Carrie Powell
Opening June 2nd, 2006. 7-11 PM.
Show Runs June 2-30, 2006.
"Unicorns" synopsis:
One night while watching “The Last Unicorn” the curators of this group
exhibition were struck by a wave of intense nostalgia for the unicorn.
Playing on a hunch that other young artists would find fascination and
inspiration from the subject of the mythical beast, they decided to
curate a group show.
The ubiquitous unicorn of the 1980’s was a bright and shimmering beacon
of innocence and imagination, though somehow it has come to occupy a
place in our memories that often feels campy or trite. The image of the
unicorn is so over-interpreted and exploited its innocent nature is
easily lost to an abundance of kitsch representations. However, these
grotesque perversions are, in the end, what make the icon of the
unicorn so fascinating and enjoyable.
The artists featured in Unicorns have all agreed to interpret for
themselves, as well as for us, the fantasy that still remains the most
magical and mysterious of all the mythical creatures.
(Art) Rock 'n' Roll!!!
On Sunday, May 14th Paper Napkin(Black Floor reps), The Good Good(NYC), Cars Will Burn(Phila), Rubix Dude(Phila), and Api Uiz(Paris/Bordeaux, France) will be performing at the gallery in conjunction with Can't See the Forest for the Trees. All are invited to attend and donations for international travellers will be greatly appreciated.
Annette Monnier's exhibit, Can't See the Forest for the Trees
will be on view through May 27, 2006.
gallery hours: Sundays 12-3pm or by appointment.
New Works by Annette Monnier
Can't See the Forest for the Trees
Opening Friday May 5, 7-11pm
On view through May 27, 2006
gallery hours: Sundays 12-3pm or by appointment
Marcel Duchamp once stated, "There is no solution because there is no problem," but although she is inclined to take a few pages from that dead guy's book, Annette Monnier can't quite believe him.
So many things seem to be going wrong, people are unhappy, and life generally sucks sometimes. So she's tried to get to the heart of the matter, figure out the root of unhappiness and reach a mountain from which we can see it all.
Can't See the Forest for the Trees refers to Annette's being thwarted in her efforts to piece together the puzzle. The details get in the way. There is the confusion of stickers existing in a time of war, laughter existing during times of sadness and every single novel ever written and people getting up every day to go to work and not being too depressed to think and birds singing and death and life and flowers and having to eat lunch: none of it fits together but all of it is here.
When you attend Black Floor Gallery on Friday May 5th expect to see bright colors and dark darkness, oh and be prepared to think.
A Collaborative exhibition by Swoon, Alison Corrie, Solovei
"La Boca Del Lobo"
Swoon, Alison Corrie, Solovei
Opening Reception Friday, April 7, 2006 to Friday, April 28th.
Gallery Hours: Sunday 12-3, or by appointment. contact
Some say art is sacred. not all art, but ours.
It has been sought after by generations of scholars
and the simple-minded alike. Everyone searches for the
golden key to unlock its vast vaults; staining the
world with wit and beauty. The gods are waiting for
someone to discover it and now there is a chance, a very accessible chance to enter this desirable realm of the unknown, this seductive and torturous void and get a peek of
salivation. Perhaps you might get distracted along the way....
An exhibition of new work by Grace J. Ryung Kim
"Ghost and Rachis"
Grace J. Ryung Kim
Opening Reception Friday, March 3, 2006 to Sunday, March 26th.
Gallery Hours: Sunday 12-3, or by appointment.
Ghost and Rachis, was inspired by a friend's enthusiastic description of an old Betty Boop cartoon which featured Cab Calloway. The cartoon's description triggered buried memories from the artist's childhood and lead to the creation of several "self-portraits". These pieces document the haunting journey from the blissful naivety of childhood to the worldly awareness of the adult. Perfectly at home in the black and white world of Black Floor, artist Grace J. Ryung Kim's ghostly sculptures bring us back to a simpler, earlier time and then slaps us in the face with the full awareness of our current state.
An exhibition of new work by Paul Coors
Opening Friday, February 3rd, 7 to 11pm through February 24th
Them! presents a museum-style display where the artist's fears, ideals, troubles and resourcefulness manifest as objects which behave both as self-sustainable and interdependant exercises in problem solving. Arrived at largely by way of personal curatorial experience and influenced by historical museum recreation and interior design, the show employs the structures of atomic age science fiction films (such as its namesake, 1954's Them!) to aesthetically address the artist's feelings of contemporary powerlessness.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BLACK FLOOR
Black Floor turns 1yrs old. Come celebrate on Saturday January 14,
2006 at 8:00 p.m., with music by Paper Napkin and Langhorne Slim, and food and libation for all...
$5.00 cover benefits Black Floor and the bands......
WELCOME YOUR SORROWS
Welcome Your Sorrows
New works by Alex Da Corte
Opening December 2 7-11p.m.
December Gallery Hours: Sundays Noon - 3 PM
Show runs Decemberr 2-30
Alex Da Corte presents
Welcome Your Sorrows opening Friday December 2, 2005 at Black Floor. This installation is inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis (
Chronicles of Narnia ), traditional religious teachings, and childhood experiences. Da Corte's work creates an Armageddon illustrating a second coming of Eden. Recalling birthday parties and other celebrations, the artist enjoys finding the humor and horror in everyday things.
SHEPARD FAIREY IN NOVEMBER
Manufacturing Dissent
New works by Shepard Fairey
Opening November 4, 2005 7:00
November 4-26
The term “Manufacturing Dissent” is a derivation of “the manufacturing of consent,” a phrase coined by Walter Lippmann to describe the propaganda engineering that he helped devise in order to drum up public support for World War I. Shepard Fairey designed his politically-charged pieces to counteract the hawkish manipulations of right-wing spin doctors with biting sarcasm and thought-provoking paradoxy. He juxtaposes symbols of combat with feminine imagery to expound upon his concept of powerful pacifism, the idea that force should be used as a means of protection rather than aggression. The explicit messages are a departure from Fairey’s deliberately ambiguous style. Rather than calling on people to question their surroundings, he asks them to fortify their values. While politicians and public relations gurus aim to skew reality into a more satisfying tune, Fairey strikes a dissonant chord, unusually lovely in its honesty.
“Manufacturing Dissent” will feature new works by Fairey including mixed media pieces, screen prints, spray paint stencils, and letterpress.
CLOSE YOUR EYES, THIS WILL TAKE SOME TIME
Sabrina Lessard
Opening Octber 7, 2005 7:00 p.m.
Oct. 7-25
Your bed. A place you spend nearly half of your life. A place that contains your personal history. A place you trust. In the exhibition Close Your Eyes, local Philadelphia artist Sabrina Lessard explores the intricacies of sleep. Incorporating her personal experiences with those of other peoples she presents the bed as a monument to our lives. Combining sculpture and sound, she creates an environment that removes a bed and the actions which take place in it from its everyday context.
NO SHOW THROUGH SEPTEMBER
Two of Black Floor's members (Nick Paparone and Jamie Dillon) are getting ready for their show at Space 1026 in October. This month we kept the gallery empty for them to build things.
BLACK FLOOR SALUTES THE ART MARKET
Saturday September 3, 2005
12-4 p.m.
Are you tired of seeing items in stores that could have easily been made by one of your friends but wasn't? Don't buy anymore fake bohemian shabby-chic! Come to Black Floor Gallery on SATURDAY September 3rd, from NOON to 4 p.m. and buy some stuff that has REAL frayed edges, REAL holes, and true deeply-felt emotional content.
Some of the artists involved are: Kat Karnaky, Carrie Powell, Damien Weinkrantz, Hawk Krall, Tim Gough, Kris Chau, Caitlin Kuhwald, Mark Price, Linda Smyth, Briele Dime, gir k, Jeff Weisner, Mike Whirley, South Philadelphia Antheum, Doub Hanshaw, Carrie Yotter...
Expect to find food, face-painting, hand-made clothes and accessories, screen-printed posters and t-shirts, a kissing booth, one-of-a-kind works of art, and much, much, more! So come out! Stop just looking like you support the arts and actually support them!
VADE MECUM
Erin Feller
"Vade mecum: Collections, Studies, and Specimens"
Opening Friday, August 5th. Doors open at 7 pm.
Show will run Aug 5-August 29, 2005
Vade mecum, from latin meaning "go with me", refers to a little book or manual that is regularly carried about by a person. Erin Feller presents to the city of Philadelphia her own manual or little book, in the form of photographs and sculpture, a collection of the things she has learned and quite literally picked up from the world around her: irons, fallen tree-branches, old typewriters, odd jars, things she has collected and studied, specimens which point out the beauty and intrigue of decay that so often eludes many of us.
Along with the object oriented work, Feller will present documentation of an ongoing mail-art project with collaborator Aaron Bray. Dubbed "Art Boomerang", this piece has been a central focus of Feller's recent work, expanding ideas about correspondence, collaboration, metamorphosis, and unpredictability.
Barbaric Stories
featuring Jimmy Baker and Matt Coors
Barbaric Stories creates a partial psychological timeline of fear. Fear of the unknown and self-destruction is explored through folklore and myth, and also, conversely, through the oddity of science fiction in relationship to environmentalism. Barbaric Stories is more concerned with how narratives are woven together, and how their psychological precedents are imparted on current culture, than in simply appropriating reference material. Both artists have crafted objects that speak through existing stories to create a more removed point of view that becomes its own social parable.
Matt’s work draws upon the grand folkloric notions of the past in order to examine personal and societal fears, concerns, and obsessions in light of general human attitudes towards the unknown. Much of his work seeks to resurrect some bits of the fears, superstitions, and supernatural beliefs that may now often be reviled as archaic nonsense, but nevertheless remain within the deep, historical roots of human experience. A text-carved wax jack-o-lantern, for example, serves not only to call to mind seasonal festivity, but also to provoke a consideration of human traditions and myth origin. Similarly, the work Here Be Dragons, a world map peppered only with small, hand-drawn, folkloric monsters, asks that the viewer consider the historical fears and uncertainties that existed around the globe, as well as their present day realities and vestiges.
Baker focuses on the gap between science fiction and environmentalism, and points at which the two overlap. From the meticulous oil rendering from Water World placed inside a rubber-coated birdcage, to the frantically modified Road Warrior-esque mountain bike, Baker flirts with a dark humor of apocalyptic proportions. A clash between the impending doom of sci-fi cinema and the doomsday prophecies of environmental scientists creates a place where faith, humor, and fear meet. This new work presents an affectation of existing narratives in order to expose an American attitude toward accountability.
Annette Monnier and Gerik Forston
Opening Friday June 3, 2005 7p.m.
Show ends June 25
Because the previously planned exhibition was unexpectedly cancelled, Black Floor calls upon resident artists Annette Monnier and Gerik Forston to present in the month of June. Domestic house cats and extinct giants of the Mezosoic become the focus of the exhibition, Cats Vs. Dinosaurs.
The childlike drawings of both artists appear on the surface to represent the animalized stereotypes of girls and boys, which becomes more interesting in light of the fact that the artists have been a couple for over five years. Though each artist was drawn to their respective subject matter for different reasons, when combined the conceptual output of the work is both symbiotic and synergistic. Cats Vs. Dinosaurs is exactly what it says it is, a fight that is impossible but somehow makes so much sense.
THE OMEGA SESSIONS PRESENTS TWO NEW PLAYS
At the end of May ,The Omega Sessions, a relatively new theatre collective, will present its latest work, Welcome To The Punk Rock Barbershop. This will be their final production in Philadelphia as they prepare to move their company to Atlanta, GA.
The first piece featured in the evening will be The Talented Twenty, a twenty minute play written by The Omega Sessions founder Michael Reid. It features Griffin Stanton-Ameisen and Mario Ramos as two young men who are worried about the war in Iraq, but more importantly where their next beer will come from, if they have what it takes to be a rock star and can they convince women to go home with them. While this piece may be political, it does not have an agenda and questions the intentions of the extreme right and the extreme left. The play is directed by Tamanya Garza.
The second piece will consist of the all-Black punk rock Riot In Johannesburg playing 13 songs they developed specifically for the evening. Their music can be described as the Clash meets the Stooges, with a little dash of Iron Maiden (and they're BLACK) R.I.J. features Guy West on guitars, Sigmund Washington on bass, and Michael Reid on drums.
The Omega Sessions
presents
Welcome To The Punk Rock Barbershop
(an event featuring the play
The Talented Twenty
and music from the band
RIOT IN JOHANNESBURG)
UNABLE TO LUNCH TODAY
film/installation
by Carrie Yotter and
Doub Hanshaw
Opening Friday May 6th at 7pm
If a picture is worth a thousand words then what's in
a song?...and if you combine a song with a picture
then how much is that worth? How much of what you hear
and see belongs to you?
Black Floor's artist/designer/film-makers of the
month; Doub Hanshaw and Carrie Yotter explore these
concepts through their interpretation of the song
"Miss Otis Regrets" originally preformed by Ella
Fitzgerald. The story of love, unexpected beauty, and
tragedy that these two women create is part film, part
live performance, part art-installation and all
passion.
ROBERTA FALLON & LIBBY ROSOF
BLOG
SMALL CHANGE AT BLACK FLOOR
Small Change Presents:
The Mad Cat Women's Film Festival
with "The Truth of the Matter"
experimental films challenging authority
curated by Ariella Ben-Dov
FRIDAY April 29
9:00pm $5.00
@The Black Floor Gallery
This link has info about the films in the program:
"The Truth of the Matter"
curated by Ariella Ben-Dov
Mad Cat Film Festival
BLACK FLOOR FEATURED IN ART BLOG
ART BLOG
NORTHERN/B SIDES APRIL 1, 2005
Black Floor is pleased to host Beth Graves and Russell Ihrig, two artists hailing from the Northern Kentucky area.
Within this exhibition the artists deal with several geographic locations: Northern Kentucky (where both artists currently reside), Cincinnati, Ohio (the metropolis just across the Ohio river), Iceland (a utopian northern oasis worthy of any and all comparison), and Philadelphia (where the work will be shown).
The work, albeit quite specific to these locations, deals with themes of parallelism, universality, and uniqueness, from the sublime to the worldly and terrestrial.
GRAND OPENING
We'd like to thank all of you who attended Black
Floor's grand opening. We received a huge turnout
and were very happy to see everything go according to
plan. Thanks again to all the artists for making our
inaugural show a success, and of course to everyone
who showed up in support.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Starting April 1st, Black Floor Gallery will be
hosting openings on the First Friday of every month.
Openings will be held from 7PM - 10PM.
Non-opening gallery hours are by appointment.
