Sometimes the best links to other cities are the ones that we create on our own rather than waiting for others to figure it out.
This is exactly what Chris Protas of Grand Haven's Fire Barn Gallery did in the purposeful collaboration with the SLAG Gallery, as he welcomes this Brooklyn, NY gallery's spring group show Preliminary Study: RSI-T (part 2) to open in three area West Michigan galleries with three consecutive receptions in a row.
The three stops in our region include Grand Haven's The Fire Barn Gallery (6/30), The Muskegon Museum of Art (7/1), and
Grand Rapids' Richard App Gallery and LaFontsee Gallery (7/2).
The show is conceptual-based and organized around the theme of how we as individuals interact with a rapidly advancing new set of body and mind movements driven by technology like computers, mobile phones, and Google Glass.
These micro movements create the perfect storm for potential pre-evolutionary injuries or, as the clinicians call them, Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI).
When we encounter these disruptions to the musculoskeletal and nervous system brought on by repetitive tasks, forceful exertions, vibrations, mechanical compression, or sustained or awkward positions, we can begin to experience a new path as a result.
The Brooklyn show features painting, installation, and video art by many artists including Ann Oren (Brooklyn, NY), James Budds Dees (Philadelphia, PA), Dov Talpaz (Brooklyn, NY), I Ting Hou (Taiwan) and Javier Barrios (Norway). Curator Naomi Lev has also invited area artists Mark Rumsey and Kevin Buist to exhibit in this show's stop in our region.
"I wanted to bring a New York show to Michigan because it's an exciting mix. I lived for 14 years in NYC, and I'm a recent transplant to West Michigan," says Protas. "Regarding that mix, I felt it would be appropriate to add area artists to the show, rather than keep it autonomous."
The final installment of the three opening gallery events culminates at the Lafontsee Gallery at 7:30 p.m. on July 2. The gallery will host a panel discussion with the show's curator and ArtForum contributor Naomi Lev, in conversation with Kevin Buist of ArtPrize; technological entrepreneur Mark Holzbach, co-founder of Zebra Imaging; and Chris Protas.
Muskegon Museum of Art, LaFontsee Gallery and Richard App Gallery, "Preliminary Study: RSI-T (part 2)" curated by Naomi Lev.
Admission: Free
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