Katie Neece, Imagining Haunting: 'Elsewheres and Elsewhens'
405_Gallery Main Space, April 6th-May 15th, 2020
405_Gallery Main Space, April 6th-May 15th, 2020
Artist Statement
The geometric forms and motifs of modernist aesthetic have transformed into emblems of the past that have become entangled, recycled and associated with consumerism and commodity goods. Modernism promised a utopia that never arrived. How we imagine the failure of this future is the focus of my Master of Fine Arts thesis and thesis exhibition Imagining Haunting: ‘Elsewheres and Elsewhens’.
In this exhibition, large scale oil paintings on canvas combine the pictorial language of geometric abstraction from the early 20th century European avant-garde with 1990’s American mall aesthetic. I consider the fusion of these time periods as a material means to incorporate recycled forms as a reference to the inherent optimism in a utopian future that has continually failed to materialize.
Using the dying shopping mall as a point of departure for my work, this recontextualization is an attempt to illustrate that the past continually reminds us of the future’s failure in the form of haunting. I argue that failure is directly embedded within the very fabric of modernist aesthetics. Modernism poses a utopia within reach, but only offers empty promises of failed hopes and futures that are struck with the harsh reality of anxieties. I believe this is a direct manifestation of the imagery itself: fractured, disintegrated and fragmented within its flat and desolate void.
- Katie Neece
The geometric forms and motifs of modernist aesthetic have transformed into emblems of the past that have become entangled, recycled and associated with consumerism and commodity goods. Modernism promised a utopia that never arrived. How we imagine the failure of this future is the focus of my Master of Fine Arts thesis and thesis exhibition Imagining Haunting: ‘Elsewheres and Elsewhens’.
In this exhibition, large scale oil paintings on canvas combine the pictorial language of geometric abstraction from the early 20th century European avant-garde with 1990’s American mall aesthetic. I consider the fusion of these time periods as a material means to incorporate recycled forms as a reference to the inherent optimism in a utopian future that has continually failed to materialize.
Using the dying shopping mall as a point of departure for my work, this recontextualization is an attempt to illustrate that the past continually reminds us of the future’s failure in the form of haunting. I argue that failure is directly embedded within the very fabric of modernist aesthetics. Modernism poses a utopia within reach, but only offers empty promises of failed hopes and futures that are struck with the harsh reality of anxieties. I believe this is a direct manifestation of the imagery itself: fractured, disintegrated and fragmented within its flat and desolate void.
- Katie Neece
INSTALLATION VIEWS
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Curatorial Statement
Imagining Haunting: 'Elsewheres and Elsewhens' presents the most recent body of work by American artist Katie Neece. She has exhibited widely around the United States in both solo and group exhibitions, and has received multiple awards for her work. This series of paintings was completed for her Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Notre Dame.
The exhibition at 405_Gallery came about both as a response to the challenges we face today, in early 2020, and the result of a long process of communication with the artist.
Neece’s scope of influences is as considered and thorough as it is expansive. Her work responds to graphic design work such Italy’s Memphis Group, architecture, and interior design—as well as vaporwave music, avant-garde practices, and Post-Internet theory.
In the work, Neece makes formal references to architectural and design features of shopping malls, which emerged during the 80s and 90s. The elements (both abstract and representational) which she incorporates into her paintings are familiar, yet historically ambiguous; they are recycled forms which haunt us through time.
These commercial and social sites continue to close around the world due to the unexpected cultural and technological developments which have emerged since they were in vogue. Yet, Neece’s work evades the feeling of nostalgia which is now associated with this time period. This is done by presenting the mall as a conceptual site which encapsulates the modernist enterprise towards a utopian future, and its failure to actualize.
Neece’s work shows a commitment to the material practices of painting through the integration of both digital and analog processes. It is for this reason, as well as the depth of thought which her work presents, that 405_Gallery is proud to present this exhibition. She demonstrates how painting continues to adapt to contemporary social and technological transformations—and reassures us that painting is, indeed, not dead yet.
Dario S. Bucheli
Director, 405_Gallery
Imagining Haunting: 'Elsewheres and Elsewhens' presents the most recent body of work by American artist Katie Neece. She has exhibited widely around the United States in both solo and group exhibitions, and has received multiple awards for her work. This series of paintings was completed for her Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Notre Dame.
The exhibition at 405_Gallery came about both as a response to the challenges we face today, in early 2020, and the result of a long process of communication with the artist.
Neece’s scope of influences is as considered and thorough as it is expansive. Her work responds to graphic design work such Italy’s Memphis Group, architecture, and interior design—as well as vaporwave music, avant-garde practices, and Post-Internet theory.
In the work, Neece makes formal references to architectural and design features of shopping malls, which emerged during the 80s and 90s. The elements (both abstract and representational) which she incorporates into her paintings are familiar, yet historically ambiguous; they are recycled forms which haunt us through time.
These commercial and social sites continue to close around the world due to the unexpected cultural and technological developments which have emerged since they were in vogue. Yet, Neece’s work evades the feeling of nostalgia which is now associated with this time period. This is done by presenting the mall as a conceptual site which encapsulates the modernist enterprise towards a utopian future, and its failure to actualize.
Neece’s work shows a commitment to the material practices of painting through the integration of both digital and analog processes. It is for this reason, as well as the depth of thought which her work presents, that 405_Gallery is proud to present this exhibition. She demonstrates how painting continues to adapt to contemporary social and technological transformations—and reassures us that painting is, indeed, not dead yet.
Dario S. Bucheli
Director, 405_Gallery