artists & participants

press release

(Long Island City, NY – June 16, 2006) P) P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center is pleased to present the group exhibition Bearable Lightness…Likeness that features the work of seven emerging artists. While the title alludes to the well-known 1984 novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, this exhibition focuses on a literal lightness of materials and engages the tradition of abstraction. Bearable Lightness…Likeness is on view in the Second Floor Mini-Kunsthalle Gallery from June 25 through October 2, 2006.

The abstract, ethereal work of these young artists is rooted in popular culture, design, fashion, color theory, and other modes of expression. In this way, abstraction is not pure, but informed by personal and societal concerns. Rather than employing traditional or found materials with symbolic value, the artists appropriate from diverse sources including industrial materials and commercial packaging like clear tape, hot glue, and plastics. Emphasizing sensuality, process, and humor, the artists display a healthy optimism for the past and present history of art, while staking a claim to the future.

Featured artists: Suzanne Broughel (b. 1962, lives and works in New York, NY) Louis Cameron (b. 1973, lives and works in Brooklyn, NY) Michele Kong (b. 1975, lives and works in Baltimore, MD) Sungmi Lee (b. 1977, lives and works in Brooklyn, NY) Todd Pavlisko (b. 1974, lives and works in Chicago, IL) Milton Rosa-Ortiz (b. 1967, lives and works in Brooklyn, NY) Cory Wagner (b. 1977, lives and works in Baltimore, MD and New York, NY)

Bearable Lightness…Likeness is organized by P.S.1 Curatorial Advisor Franklin Sirmans.

Pressetext

only in german

BEARABLE LIGHTNESS…LIKENESS
Kurator: Franklin Sirmans

mit Suzanne Broughel, Louis Cameron, Michele Kong, Sungmi Lee, Todd Pavlisko, Milton Rosa-Ortiz, Cory Wagner