DEAN KESSMANN : Plastic on Paper
January 4 - 31, 2006
Conner Contemporary Art is delighted to exhibit new digital photographs by Washington-based artist Dean Kessmann. In Plastic on Paper, Kessmann presents a typology of contemporary life through the transformation of plastic shopping bags. This is the artist's second solo exhibition with the gallery.
Plastic shopping bags are the stuff of everyday life. We use, reuse and recycle them. In forming this series, Kessmann selected a small amount from the top of his recycle bin. Noting variations in density, color, type and message he began to scan individual images. The results began to morph. Kessmann explains, "The nebulous blobs have many connotations: historical and contemporary art, medical imagery, popular culture, and marketing strategies—digital traces that have been opened, so that they may be filled with a variety of interpretations. The glowing shapes may be instantly recognized for what they are, a byproduct of our culture of production, consumption, and waste. Yet with a blink of an eye, these plastic bags will once again become something much more beautiful than what they just were, much more intriguing than the objects themselves."
There will be opening night reception at Conner Contemporary Art on Friday, January 6th from 6-8pm.