Simen Johan:
Until the Kingdom Comes
July 2 - October 4, 2010
in the Street Level Gallery
Of course, there will always be those who look only at technique, who ask ‘how’,
while others of a more curious nature will ask 'why'. Personally, I have always
preferred inspiration to information. -Man Ray
Experiencing Simen Johan's artwork relies partially on the imagination of you, the
observer, as to how rich your experience of the images will be. The works are intentionally
untitled to allow for several possible interpretations of his photographs and sculptures.
Merging traditional photographic techniques with digital methods, Johan creates
each of his images from several negatives, having first constructed or discovered
each element and photographed it on film. Similarly, Johan's sculptures are also
a fusion of the realistic and artistic further challenging us to believe or question
what we are seeing.
The title of the exhibition, Until the Kingdom Comes, "refers less
to the kingdoms of the bible and natural world, and more to the human fantasy that
one day, in some way, life will come to a blissful resolution. The answers to who
we are and what we’re doing in this world, will come to light and validate our existence.
In a reality where understanding is not finite and in all probability never will
be, I depict 'living' as an emotion-driven experience, engulfed in uncertainty,
desire and illusion." (SJ)
Simen Johan: Until the Kingdom Comes was organized by 21c Museum as an
ongoing series of solo exhibitions that highlight individual artists represented
in the 21c collection. For the first time this exhibition brings together ten years
of work by Johan, including several new works previously unexhibited, loans from
private collections, galleries, and five works from the 21c collection. Simen Johan:
Until the Kingdom Comes will travel to the Frist Center for Visual Arts
February 20 - May 29, 2011.
About the Artist
Johan has been widely exhibited internationally, and is in the permanent collections
of the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Cleveland Art Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum
of Art, and other major institutions. Johan's first monograph, Room to Play,
was published by Twin Palms in 2003. Born in Norway and raised in Sweden, Johan
earned his B.F.A at the School of Visual Arts, in New York, where he currently resides.
Exhibited Works
- Eight untitled images from Evidence of Things Unseen Series, 2000-2003.
Digital c-prints. Courtesy of the artist and Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #129, 2005 (Arctic Wolf). Taxidermy, Kanekalon fiber, wood, museum
board, glitter, crystals, beads, pearls, plastic. Courtesy of the artist and Yossi
Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #130, 2005 (Mammoth). Digital c-print. Courtesy of the artist
and Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #131, 2005 (Llama). Digital c-print. Collection of Laura Lee Brown
& Steve Wilson.
- Untitled #132, 2005 (Owls). Digital c-print. Courtesy of the artist and
Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #133, 2005 (Moose). Digital c-print. Private Collection, New Jersey.
- Untitled #135, 2005 (Axis Deer). Taxidermy, Kanekalon fiber, wood paneling,
stain. Collection of Laura Lee Brown & Steve Wilson.
- Untitled #136, 2005 (Foxes). Digital c-print. Collection of Laura Lee Brown
& Steve Wilson.
- Untitled #140, 2007 (Albino Deer). Digital c-print. Collection of Frances
Beatty, Allen Adler, and Alex Adler.
- Untitled #152, 2008 (Bears). Digital c-print. Courtesy of the artist and
Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #153, 2008 (Buffalo). Digital c-print. Collection of Laura Lee
Brown & Steve Wilson.
- Untitled #155, 2010 (Frog Eating Bird). Digital c-print. Courtesy of the
artist and Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.
- Untitled #158, 2009 (Black Chicken #3). Feathers, cocoons, bones, barbwire,
sparrows, insects, foliage, taxidermy, cement, rock, wood. Collection of Laura Lee
Brown & Steve Wilson.
- Untitled #161, 2010 (Chicken). Tree log, feathers, coconuts, mushrooms,
eggs, sparrows, finches, insects, foliage. Courtesy of the artist and Yossi Milo
Gallery, New York.
2010 Exhibitions
Death of Childhood
21c Museum Celebrates El Día de los Muertos with a collaboration with University
of Louisville Professor Mitch Eckert's Color Photography Course
Late October - Early December
in Gallery 4
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exhibition details
Back to the Futurama
Jeremy Dean
Late September - October 21, 2010
in Gallery 4
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exhibition details
Simen Johan: Until the Kingdom Comes
July 2 - October 4, 2010
in the Street Level Gallery
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exhibition details
Faces of Fooshegu
Lindsay Cameron
November 2009 - Early October 2010
in Gallery 1, off the Atrium
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exhibition details
The Pleasure Park
Elena Dorfman
April - July 2010
in the Video Lounge
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exhibition details
Talking Back: An Exhibition of T-shirt Messages and The Bodies Who Wear
Them
Leslie Lyons
November 2009 - March 2010
in Gallery 3, off the Atrium
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exhibition details