shane darwent

Shane Darwent: Southside All Stars

This month I am curating a solo exhibition of work by Shane Darwent at Napoleon Gallery. Shane and I met at Penland School of Crafts, we were both in the core fellowship program and were roommates. We collaborated on a series together titled Five a few years ago. In the last couple of years, I've been following his work with great interest, watching him combine the mediums of photography and sculpture in new ways. It's been a pleasure working with him to put this show together. Rachel White wrote an excellent essay for the exhibition, which you can read here.

The exhibition opens this Friday from 6-10pm (more info below). We hope to see you there!


Southside All Stars

A SOLO-EXHIBITION BY SHANE DARWENT, CURATED BY NAPOLEON MEMBER MARIANNE DAGES

In Southside All Stars, litter-dappled grass becomes a painterly celebration of grotesque beauty. Colorful, plastic still-lives are like empty sets, ripe with possible narratives. Darwent draws inspiration from the semi-urban landscape of his Chattanooga neighborhood and presents photographs and sculptures that encourage us to contemplate the role of material culture in our lives and in the lives of a community at the edge of opportunity. 
Opening Reception
First Friday, August 7th
6pm – 10pm
NAPOLEON
319 N 11th Street, 2L
Philadelphia, PA
Exhibition Dates: 8.7.2015 – 8.28.2015
Galllery Hours: Saturdays and Sundays 2pm – 6pm or by appointment

Collaboration


:: Georgia # 2 ::


:: Eastern Missouri # 2 :::: North Carolina # 2 ::

My friend Shane Darwent just launched a website. He takes incredible photographs and makes sculptures inspired by the sights he's seen in his travels around the country. Last fall, we collaborated on a portfolio as part of a show at Rebus Works.


The idea was simple, Shane selected a series of image of basketball hoops and mailed them to me. When I received them, I laid them out and began "altering" them with a mixture of drawing and collage.

I wanted to make marks that accented the tight composition of Shane's photographs, obscuring and highlighting parts of the photograph.
:: Tennessee # 1 ::

We ended up with a portfolio of five which happens to be the number of players on a basketball team.
:: Ava, MO ::
Shane and I are interested in producing a small edition of prints from the originals. I'll keep you updated on the project as it develops.

Via Penland

Mr. Shane Darwent, bookbinding by Kathy Steinsberger

If you're in North Carolina, there's a great show up in Raleigh at Rebus Works Gallery featuring photographer Shane Darwent. The show's name is Via Penland. Every year, the gallery features one artist connected to Penland School of Crafts. This year, they featured Shane and his collaborations with five book artists, including myself.

Via Penland

This show represents over a year of travels and residencies, which are beautifully documented on Shane's blog. Shane also put together a great slide show of the opening, which you can see here.
My collaboration with Shane, a portfolio of five collages/drawings on his photographs housed in a box.

Some of Shane's hand-colored photographs

It looks like it was a great opening, I wish I could have been there! I'd love to hear your thoughts if you were there. I'm so glad I got a chance to do this collaboration with my fellow former core student, Shane. Thank you Shane!