Friday, March 28, 2014

WONDERFUL PROFILE ON COLEMAN + MEHRAN AND "TRANSITIONAL FRAGMENTS" IN SUNDAY DENVER POST


Denver Post art critic Ray Mark Rinaldi went the extra mile to get the human angle on Plus Gallery's current featured artists Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran.  His coverage landed as the headline on the front page of last Sunday's Denver Post Arts and Entertainment section, providing a rare thrill for both artists and the gallery's efforts.  Coleman and Mehran have had a positive influence on a large swath of Colorado's art scene (and well beyond), and continue to have a major impact on students within the fascinating Emergent Digital Practices department at the University of Denver, where they both teach and work practically non-stop.  It is an honor to have their first exhibition within a local contemporary gallery take place here at Plus Gallery, what Rinaldi noted as "the city's most progressive commercial art space."

COLEMAN AND MEHRAN TO GIVE ARTIST TALK THIS SATURDAY AFTERNOON, MARCH 29TH AT 4PM


Please join us here at Plus Gallery this Saturday afternoon at 4pm to hear from Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran about one of the most distinct artistic collaborations in the community and their sublime exhibition "Transitional Fragments."

MONKEY TOWN 4 PROFILED IN NEW ISSUE OF MODERN IN DENVER


The Monkey-love keeps pouring forth from Denver's most in-tune press sources, this time a two-page spread in the new issue of Modern In Denver, one of the most consistently classy publications coming out of Denver.  Grab a copy today.....and we can't say it enough, but get out and check out Monkey Town 4, it's a sure indication that Denver can live up to all the hype of being a true hot-spot in the US for advanced culture and entertainment.

THANKS TO ALL WHO JOINED US FOR EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC NIGHT LAST WEDNESDAY

What an outstanding and once-again mesmerizing performance by Tatsuya Nakatani, Janet Feder and Conrad Kehn.  We were also graced by a full-house of enthusiastic supporters, who delivered a joyous, well deserved standing ovation for the performers that evening.


PLUS GALLERY INTERN PHILIPPE MOORE'S THESIS PERFORMANCE "S.E.T.H." TAKES PLACE APRIL 5th


Plus Gallery has a long history of working closely with interns, many of whom have gone on to solid careers in the arts both locally and beyond.  We encourage you to check out previous Plus Gallery intern Philippe Moore's one-night only DU Thesis performance "S.E.T.H." on April 5th at 7pm at Counterpath Press (613 22nd Street).

S.E.T.H. challenges and critiques how we use technology through performance within a sensor-embedded exo-suit. By drastically altering the way in which he perceives and expresses himself, Moore will explore technology as mediator and extension of the self. When perception is reality, the technology through which we choose to perceive the world should be critically examined.

According to Moore the performance is kid-friendly, though alcohol will be served.  Check out the event link at:
 
 

MONKEY TOWN 4 MAKES FRONT PAGE OF DENVER POST!


Very rare, repeat press by Ray Mark Rinaldi on the fascinating Monkey Town 4 experience, this time on the front page of the Denver Post!
 
 

PLUS GALLERY FEATURED IN CURRENT ISSUE OF ART LTD.

Limited copies available right now at Plus Gallery

SAVE THE DATE: WES MAGYAR "MEANS TO AN END" OPENS AT ARVADA CENTER APRIL 11th

 Plus Gallery artist Wes Magyar will be featured with the Jeffco Alumni Solo Exhibition  in the Theater Gallery at the Arvada Center fromApril 11th through May 11th.  Please join us for the Opening Reception Friday April 11th 6-9pm


CURRENTLY ON VIEW AT PLUS GALLERY

"Transitional Fragments" by Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran
Save the date for a discussion with the artists Saturday, March 29th at 4pm

Friday, March 14, 2014

PLUS GALLERY PRESENTS "TRANSITIONAL FRAGMENTS" THIS THURSDAY EVENING



JOIN US FOR A UNIQUE ENGAGEMENT WITH TWO FASCINATING DENVER ARTISTS, CHRIS COLEMAN AND LALEH MEHRAN

One of the biggest thrills for the gallery is introducing new artists to our constituents, historically that has come in many forms whether with artists starting out from ground-zero to those who have already built credibility and interest in their careers.  This month we could not be more thrilled to present for the first time at Plus Gallery the collaborative team of Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran, two of the most engaged and celebrated artists within Denver's new media landscape. Their individual and collaborative efforts having taken center stage at some of the state's most prestigious museums and institutions including the Denver Art Museum, BMoca and Colorado Springs Gallery of Contemporary Art. Their latest collaborative body of work "Transitional Fragments" presents a seductive, multi-layered effort that illuminates the gallery through strikingly beautiful works of hybrid media with a distinct relationship to mapping as well as the earth and sky. It is the first of back-to-back exhibitions hosted by the gallery that highlight the talent inherent in Denver's new media sphere, showcasing work that is truly on the leading-edge in both art and design.

Please join us this Thursday evening from 6-8pm in welcoming  Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran and sharing in our excitement surrounding their latest effort "Transitional Fragments."


Denver Post art critic Ray Mark Rinaldi noted the exhibition as a Best Bet in last Friday's Denver Post, read what he has to say about it at:

Westword noted the opening reception for the exhibition in this week's Night and Day section, read Robin Edwards column at

Susan Froyd of Westword also interviewed Chris Coleman this week for their ongoing "100 Colorado Creatives" series.  Read Chris' response at:

And read more about the exhibition context at http://www.plusgallery.com

About the artists

Laleh Mehran was born in Iran and relocated with her family to the United States at the start of the Iranian Islamic Revolution. Mehran's creative practice is inspired by both Eastern and Western philosophical understandings and aesthetic sensibilities, where art and design are merged with digital technologies and physical materials. She received her MFA from Carnegie Mellon University in Electronic Time-Based Media. Her work has been shown individually and as part of art collectives at the Next 5 Minutes 4 Tactical Media Festival in Amsterdam, Holland; the European Media Arts Festival in Osnabruck, Germany; Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art; the Carnegie Museum of Art; the Georgia Museum of Art; the Andy Warhol Museum; the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art; 404 International Festival of Art & Technology in Argentina; and Currents: The Santa Fe International New Media Festival in New Mexico. Mehran's highly regarded installation "Men of God, Men of Nature," exhibited in the Fuse Box at the Denver Art Museum for almost a year through 2012-2013, was one of the most ambitious and enthralling works ever presented by a local artist at the institution. Mehran currently works an Associate Professor and Graduate Director in Emergent Digital Practices at the University of Denver.

Chris Coleman was born in West Virginia, USA and he received his MFA from SUNY Buffalo in New York. His work includes sculptures, videos, creative coding and interactive installations. His knowledge of the trends within a transformative new medium is boundless, no doubt a component of his own international exposure in venues such as the VIPER Basel Festival in Switzerland as well as exhibitions in Singapore, Finland, Sweden, Italy, Germany, France, China, the UK, Latvia and 16 other countries. In the US alone his work has been shown at more than 45 events and festivals, including Times Square in NYC. His software project (in collaboration with Ali Momeni) called "Maxuino" has been downloaded by 30,000 people in 125 countries and is used in classrooms and artworks across the globe. Locally, Coleman has been an integral part of Plus Gallery's side-project Denver Digerati and one of the first artists commissioned by the Denver Theatre District for their new permanent collection of motion-based art, unveiled in the fall of 2013 at Denver Digerati's final "Friday Flash" program. He is also an Associate Professor of Emergent Digital Practices at the University of Denver.

Both Coleman and Mehran's careers are additionally distinguished through their unique collaborations together and with others. The pair have been collaborating on works together since 2001, connecting the corporeal with the digital and beyond. Their extraordinary interactive installation "W3FI" was originally hosted at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art in 2011 before moving on to other institutional settings throughout the U.S. and the world. Both artists have works presented in the immersive art/dining experience "Monkey Town 4" being held in Denver for the first time this winter, bringing their motion-based art to an even wider public in an outstanding new context. Both will also be featured in the upcoming Arvada Center exhibitions "Entropic Order  |  My House is not My House" opening June 5th and also featuring Plus Gallery artists Alex McLeod and Milton Croissant III.


Chris Coleman and Laleh Mehran taking in Coleman's work at Monkey Town 4

ALLIE POHL's "IDEAL WOMAN - LEATHER AND LACE" DEBUTING NOW AT PLUS GALLERY


Allie Pohl's latest in her ongoing "Ideal Woman" series arrived at Plus Gallery this week, the absolutely scintillating "Leather and Lace."  This is an extremely limited edition of 3 from Allie, and one of her most charming and complex configurations to date. The first in the series is already sold, so don't delay in coming by to take a look now at Plus Gallery.



Allie presented her most recent Peacocking series in California last weekend in the two-person exhibition "Peacocks in Flight" at Galerie 102 in Ojai, California.  The local paper there ran a wonderful spread on Allie in anticipation of the exhibition.


TERRIFIC NEW SMALL-SCALE DRAWING BY DON FODNESS ARRIVES AT PLUS GALLERY


Plus Gallery artist Donald Fodness recently completed a new small-scale paint-by-numbers drawing "Everyone Looks Up To You" which we think is a gem. Be the first to see it this Thursday during Chris and Laleh's opening reception at Plus Gallery.



For those who missed the Denver Post feature on Monkey Town 4 a couple of weeks back right after it's opening night launch, we encourage you to read about it online at:


Immense praise has been pouring forth from all corners of the community that has already engaged with this unique program, it is truly an experience that all audiences can enjoy or appreciate.  Monkey Town 4 continues weekly now until the 1st of June, make your reservations for this historic undertaking at:



And you can view a few excerpts from the experience on youtube at the following links:

PLUS GALLERY TO HOST A NIGHT OF MUSIC MARCH 19th IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE PLAYGROUND ENSEMBLE

Join Plus Gallery next Wednesday, March 19th, when we host three sensational experimental musicians: Tatsuya Nakatani with Janet Feder and Conrad Kehn

Doors 7pm. we'll start 7:30ish $8 suggested donation.


Tatsuya Nakatani is a creative artist originally from Osaka, Japan. Mr. Nakatani has released over sixty recordings in the USA and Europe and has performed countless solo percussion concerts through intensive touring. He has also collaborated with hundreds of other artists internationally and presented masterclasses, workshops and lectures across the USA and around the world.

Nakatani's approach to music is visceral, non-linear and intuitively primitive, expressing an unusually strong spirit while avoiding any categorization. He creates sound via both traditional and extended percussion techniques, utilizing drums, bowed gongs, cymbals, singing bowls, metal objects and bells, as well as various sticks, kitchen tools and homemade bows, all of which manifest in an_intense and organic music that represents a very personal sonic world. His approach is steeped in the sensibilities of free improvisation, experimental music, jazz, rock, and noise, and yet retains the sense of space and quiet beauty found in traditional Japanese folk music. His percussion instruments can imitate the sounds of a trumpet, a stringed instrument_or an electronic device to the extent that it becomes difficult to recognize the source of the sound. He has devoted himself to a musical aesthetic where rhythm gives way to pulse, often in a way that is not always audible or visible, in currents that incorporate silence and texture

Tatsuya Nakatani has spent the past decade traveling and performing extensively throughout the United States and beyond. His constant touring fosters the raw and fresh quality in his music, which can only survive through an open willingness to share energy, culture, music and self on a global human scale. He has toured and performed in Japan, China, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany, England, Scotland, Belgium, Netherlands, Portugal, Poland,_Ukraine, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Argentina, Chile, Israel and across the USA, coast to coast. Tatsuya collaborates and performs with a wide range of artists, from internationally renowned musicians to students of all ages, occupations and musical skill levels.

Tatsuya will be joined on the program by Janet Feder, guitar and Conrad Kehn, voice/ laptop. A staple of the Denver creative music scene, Janet Feder performs intimate landscapes on prepared guitar informed by a sonic universe that is uniquely her own.
Conrad Kehn is a composer, improviser, performer, educator, administrator and writer. He is the founder of The Playground; a chamber ensemble dedicated to modern music. As a vocalist, Conrad specializes in improvisation, contemporary music, and electronics.


RUMOR HAS IT


That Plus Gallery artist Jenny Morgan will have her first exposure in a museum context later this fall in a group exhibition being hosted at the Jacksonville, Florida Museum of Contemporary Art. More details on that and other developments in Morgan's career surely to follow later this year.