Utah Exhibition Reviews published in 15 Bytes, Utah’s art magazine, including reviews of local Utah artists, regional artists, group exhibitions and traveling exhibits of national and international artists.
Sculptures by Richard Johnston, including “Helmet” (front) with paintings by Joe Ostraff at Phillips Gallery. Mahonri Young won his largest sculptural commissions in Utah only after he left the state (he had been in New York for three decades when he began work on This is the Place monument). Something […]
“The idea for Sun Tunnels became clear to me while I was in the desert watching the sun rising and setting, keeping the time of the earth. Sun Tunnels can exist only in that particular place – the work evolved out of its site. Words and photographs of the work are memory […]
“Metamorphosis” by Laura Erekson Atkinson, mixed media, 2017 In her latest work, Laura Erekson Atkinson explores a very intimate experience in her life – pregnancy. “It’s a beautiful process, but it can also be hard, painful and difficult,” she says. “I wanted to explore all parts of pregnancy […]
“Jackson Lake at Twilight” by George Beard, Courtesy of L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Brigham Young University. The LDS culture places a strong emphasis on family history, encouraging its members to research genealogical data as well as preserve the stories of family members. In this cultural endeavor, a […]
“The Man Behind the Zion Curtain” by Ben Steele Gallery owner Diane Stewart conceived Art Behind the Zion Curtain as a challenge to artists with local ties to reflect on Utah’s social, political, and cultural issues. Fourteen painters, sculptors, and photographers responded with pieces on view at Modern West Fine […]
Barbara Ellard has mastered the ability to combine simplicity of form with complexity of surface, a fact that easily can be seen in her ceramics show, Organic Geometry. For this exhibition, open at Finch Lane Gallery until June 9, Ellard has managed to create several pieces that are strikingly […]
I’m standing on a sandstone cliff, about to make my way down to “False Kiva,” a Class II archeological site located beneath a dramatic overhang in Canyonlands National Park. In the distance, Candlestick Butte is unmistakable. It’s a flat fin of a rock that juts out into the […]
“Wound” by Whitney Horrocks, 48″ x 48″ In Personae, her current exhibit at Salt Lake City’s Marmalade Branch Library, Whitney Horrocks has managed to bring emotion to the surface through many layers of abstraction, showing the viewer the depth of the work even as the initial presentation may seem […]
What is the role of the artist: storyteller, activist, documentarian? In this time of ever-increasing globalization, complete with rising concerns about our rights and our future, the lines between roles continue to blur. As artists seek to create works that will appeal to many, they also find themselves […]
Doug Tolman exhibits his photographs of abandoned structures in Utah, Mexico and Central America at Art Access beginning Friday, April 21. Ben Sang, of Shaded Minds, discussed this body of work with the artist in 2016 (see the original article here). Doug Tolman is a young photographer based in Salt […]
Christopher Lynn Misplaced Wall Latex paint on cardboard 2017 What defines sculpture and painting? How do we understand the difference between flat surfaces and dimension? What colors represent contemporary misery? Specific Abject, a group show open through May 12 at the Rio Gallery, features two- and three-dimensional pieces that […]
“In Arcadia” by Madeline Rupard, acrylic on panel, 2017 In ancient Greek mythology, Arcas, the son of Zeus and Callisto, ruled over Arcadia, a utopian paradise that later housed the god Pan. Arcadia eventually eclipsed its namesake to become a symbol for a mythical and unblemished landscape, a […]
