Greylock Arts Natural Selection
Lively Turnout for Adams Opening
By: Charles Giuliano - Apr 24, 2010
There was a lively turnout last night for the opening of Natural Selection curated by Matt Blanger and Marianne Petit at their alternative space, Greylock Arts, 93 Summer Street, in Adams, Mass.
They have brought life and activity to what was once a thriving Polish community. The storefronts along Summer Street are now mostly shuttered. The building they purchased several years ago contains a street level commecrical. From their upper windows they enjoy a wonderful view of Mount Greylock which inspired the naming of their gallery.
Over the past few years they have organized a richly diverse program of exhibitions. There is a youhtful tech orientation. But the current project, Natural Selection, has created a nice dialogue between traditional media and approaches to nature as well as conceptual responses.
They have involved the extensive Berkshire arts community. During the week they are mostly in New York where Marianne is a professor at NYU. They regularly include New York artists in their projects. The current exhibition is reflective of that diversity.
David Lachman, who works with video, started keeping bees last summer. He started with two hives. he has created a limted edition. The labels depict Marianne as the Queen Bee and Matt as a drone. They are selling for $20 each which is a lot for honey but inexpensive for works of art.
We were intrigued by the scratch and sniff project of Alex Kaufmnann. There are rotating images. When the grapefruit is displayed, for example, you rub the screen and then lean in to sniff.
The drawing devices in the window by Christian Cerrito are activated by solar energy. Since the sun was setting they slowed to a halt. To demonstrate he used a bright light to get them going.
For the other window piece Michelle Vitale Loughlin installed a cascade of foil strands that simulate a waterfall. In a comment on ecology the waterfall contained debris. Matt Pass provided a sound component to the installation.
We talked with Jeremy Rotzstein who is displaying two, large, computer generated digital prints of altered nature.
The landscape painter Henry Klein lives in Adams. For this show he included the largest canvas I havs seen to date.
The MCLA professor, Gregory Scheckler, is know for small, meticulous paintings. This time he is showing a grid of prints of cloud studies.
The realistic paiintings of domesticated birds by Martha Denmead Rose were just exsquisite. An artist told me he was very tempted to buy her work.
The exhibition is open on Saturdays from 1 to 4 and by appointment. It remains on view through June 5. For more information call 423 241 8692.