BEARSPACE

PREVIEW EVENING: FRIDAY, 30 July, 6.30-8.30 pm in association with Deptford Last Fridays, galleries in Deptford open until 8.30 pm, with afterparty at the Old Police Station. 

APOPHATIC PAREIDOLIA is a condition… by Mike Chavez-Dawson which features as a debut solo show at BEARSPACE, which presents two new works ‘Hypotyposis’ and ‘The Obvious Manifesto, [The Question Hangs]’ which both continues the artists interest in creating multi-layered ‘performative’ works that explore the slippage between the artists intention and the audiences perception via a complex web of narratives, art history & theory, social and psychoanalytical references.

Here he’s utilised documentation from two bodies of ‘performative’ works to create a series of objects that sit between drawing, print, sculpture and performance. Chavez-Dawson also continues to blur ‘authorship’ boundaries by negotiating and revealing collaborative components to diffuse an individual agency.

‘Hypotyposis’ is a new body of work specifically made for APOPHATIC PAREIDOLIA is a condition... Chavez-Dawson interest in the word hypotyposis which simply mean’s ‘word picturing’ and ‘creating the illusion of reality’ stems from his interest in the Rorschach; a controversial method of psychological clinical assessment based on a series of ink blots. The Rorschach has been a continuing motif in Chavez-Dawson’s work over the last decade – especially through his alter ego phase and Mind Projected Cinema. More recently the Rorschach or archetypal inkblot have been incorporated into a series of live action paintings. These paintings aren’t random splodges, but words dripped in the artist’s own handwriting, in the case of this series of  ‘Hypotyposis’ he’s asked for the favourite current word from a selection of artists, curators, critic’s and cultural figures, that include: Cecelia Wee, David Shrigley, Charles Esche, Tom Morton, Stewart Home, Dave Beech, Eddie Berg, Gordon Cheung and Henrietta. From this series he presents a playful work in progress – featuring the original poster paint paintings, an animated film of these particular paintings and a selection of ‘laser etched prototypes’.

Also, featured is his retired alter ego’s ‘Robin Nature-Bold’s’ ‘The Obvious Manifesto’, which are collection of seven laser etchings (7inch record size) that plot key moments of his rise and demise as a deluded creative. A fictional short story ‘The Question Hangs’ written by Chavez-Dawson & long-standing collaborator artist/writer Len Horsey is present as a wall text, and narrated video piece in collaboration with actress Amy Rudolph.  A limited edition print titled ‘Bye, Bye’ which is an ongoing piece from ‘The Obvious Manifesto’ will be included. ‘Bye, Bye’ is a variable mock up book cover-cum-poster which has the statement ‘IF YOU LIKE MY ART YOU ARE CLEVER, IF YOU DON’T YOU ARE STUPID!’ for this show it will be presented as a pre-wrapped A2 lamda print enclosed in a clear plastic A2 portfolio.

Also Chavez-Dawson has selected several related text works by artist Brian Reed to feature as part of this show.