Erik Parra
each devil his own
December 4, 2015 - January 23, 2016
Opening Reception: Friday, December 4th 6-9pm
review
radio interview
review
Erik Parra, interior with bricks, stairs and hutch, 2015, acrylic with marker and spray paint, 11" x 14"
Transmission Gallery is pleased to present the work of Erik Parra. each devil his own will be an exhibition of paintings, drawings and a site specific installation that draws on tropes of the horrific, mid-century aesthetics & politics to ask questions about the origins of certain, current sociopolitical narratives in the vernacular of pictorial construction. In three small series of original compositions Parra conflates his personal history and knowledge with mid-century historical narratives in order to view important, current social concerns through the lens of history. This serves as an entryway into a process of constructing images that draw on our conceptions of space and the stories we tell ourselves in order to navigate the environments we build.
For this exhibition the interior plays host to a range of potential conversations related to aesthetics, politics and history. Central to this exhibition is an examination of postwar historical narratives; such as white flight and the American space program and their challenging effects on contemporary society. Both darkness and lightness are employed to present not only familiar looking interior spaces but also for their expressive narrative effect. Objects within each painted interior are chosen for the potential of their symbolic form to be both simultaneously loaded and banal. This duality then resonates with similar formal choices within the work and drives the potential to open new space to create productive dialogue with the attendant issues. Parra is interested in drawing on our collective cultural memory as informed by the histories of painting, film, aggressive underground music and radical politics in order to paint a critical, collective self-portrait at a very critical time.
Erik Parra received his BFA from the University of Texas, Austin and his MFA from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and has taught both locally and internationally. Although he’s exhibited his work in cities such as London, Chicago, New York, Austin and Boston, Parra has been embedded in the bay area art scene for many years contributing his work to the rich culture of San Francisco and Oakland.
There will be an opening reception Friday, December 4th 6-9pm.
For this exhibition the interior plays host to a range of potential conversations related to aesthetics, politics and history. Central to this exhibition is an examination of postwar historical narratives; such as white flight and the American space program and their challenging effects on contemporary society. Both darkness and lightness are employed to present not only familiar looking interior spaces but also for their expressive narrative effect. Objects within each painted interior are chosen for the potential of their symbolic form to be both simultaneously loaded and banal. This duality then resonates with similar formal choices within the work and drives the potential to open new space to create productive dialogue with the attendant issues. Parra is interested in drawing on our collective cultural memory as informed by the histories of painting, film, aggressive underground music and radical politics in order to paint a critical, collective self-portrait at a very critical time.
Erik Parra received his BFA from the University of Texas, Austin and his MFA from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and has taught both locally and internationally. Although he’s exhibited his work in cities such as London, Chicago, New York, Austin and Boston, Parra has been embedded in the bay area art scene for many years contributing his work to the rich culture of San Francisco and Oakland.
There will be an opening reception Friday, December 4th 6-9pm.
