Hi Hedley,

I shall attempt to reconfig the immersive studio on fri, along the lines of
our discussion with mike from monday.

best,
john.



-----Original Message-----
From: Announcement list for Visual Arts Practice on behalf of Hedley Roberts
Sent: Thu 11/10/2007 11:24
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: FW: Lucas Samaras
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Stephen Friedman Gallery [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: 10 October 2007 11:44
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Lucas Samaras


 
 
Lucas Samaras 



Lucas Samaras
Orchid 44
2003



Lucas Samaras
Self-Portrait, December 21
1987



Lucas Samaras


12 October - 17 November, 2007
Preview Thursday 11 October 2007, 6-8pm

Stephen Friedman Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of historical
work by Greek-born American artist Lucas Samaras.

Lucas Samaras's original and versatile approach to art making has had a
profound impact on developments in contemporary art, creating works which
have anticipated dominant trends in painting, sculpture and photography. In
this exhibition, rare and early works by the artist are presented alongside
'Doorway' - a mirrored room environment conceived in 1966 and produced here
for the first time.

Appearing from Rutgers University in the late fifties, Samaras found himself
at the centre of the New York art world; his peers included Allan Kaprow,
George Segal and Robert Whitman. The performative mood of the Happenings
scene influenced and shaped a life-long preoccupation with the self, always
incorporating his immediate environment into his work. Expressed in his
sculptural work or in his radical use of Polaroid film, Samaras always found
himself as the subject of his own universe. The investigation of the body or
the portrait of the artist provides the central concern that unites the broad
and varied character of his art. 

Starting in the mid-sixties and continuing through the eighties, Samaras
created a series of bejewelled assemblage boxes encrusted in objects such as
push pins, glass millefiore beads, yarn or razor blades. These boxes suggest
inhabited worlds, recalling the Greek Byzantine heritage of his forefathers,
while the off cuts and discarded materials refer to childhood recollections
of the young Samaras spending time with his dressmaker aunt. Included in the
exhibition is 'Box #101' (1977-89) - a compelling psychological portrait
where the anatomical rendering of the artist's body is shown on the front of
the box before it opens out like an altarpiece to disclose a hidden
self-portrait within the shrouded and punctured case.

The chicken wire boxes of the 1970s continue the developments Samaras
initiated in his box works a decade earlier. Here, stripped back from their
embellished surfaces, the artist examines the physical form and  construction
of the container. Painting the surfaces in different colours, he highlights
the shape of its essence by identifying its component planes. The chicken
wire boxes suggest a pure and obsessive rendering of geometry.

Responding to developments in Minimalist and Post-Minimalist art, Samaras
also concentrated on the geometric possibilities integral to two-dimensional
works. The transformative potential of art making attracted Samaras to return
to the traditional medium of painting, exploring the surface plane in
psychedelic and illusory space. 'Untitled #12' (1973) is one example from a
series of round disc paintings. Using a system of rules Samaras built up
segments of colour, which seemingly spin out of control expanding the
geometric possibilities of the circular space.

The synthesis of the paintings and chicken wire boxes are most clearly
achieved in the fabric reconstructions, which first appeared in the late
seventies. Horizontal bands of wildly different fabrics and patterns are here
stitched together, creating a science fiction of space and composition.
Anticipating the digital age, Samaras, in his acute observations of detail
and form, zones in on the pixilated components and structure of his works.

'Doorway' (1966-2007), is perhaps the purest example of Samaras' mirrored
rooms. Here, the viewer participates as both performer and subject as he
enters an open-sided room made from mirrored panels. A large mirrored cube
sits in the middle of the space and creates a further distortion of the
environment. The visceral assault of the viewing space inside 'Doorway'
recalls the fractured prismatic space of Samaras's 'Fabric Reconstructions'
and 'Dot Paintings'.  Whether sampling materials close to hand in his
assemblage box structures or making use of new technologies, Samaras
possesses an alchemic approach to his transformations in photography,
painting and sculpture.

A fully illustrated catalogue with essays by Anthony Downey and Claire Bishop
accompanies the exhibition.

Stephen Friedman Gallery is participating in Frieze Art Fair from 11 to 14
October 2007, stand D4.

Forthcoming exhibition: David Shrigley, 30 November 2007 - 12 January 2008

Stephen Friedman Gallery <http://www.stephenfriedman.com> is located at 25-28
Old Burlington Street, London W1S 3AN
Gallery hours are: Tuesday to Friday, 10am-6pm and Saturday 11am-5pm

For further details please contact Hanne Tonger-Erk
<mailto:[log in to unmask]>  on +44 20 7494
1434

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