"Things That Kill" curated by Norman Lundin, September 1 - October 29, 2016

Ellen Garvens, Drapery cord, 2016, inkjet print on paper, 15 x 20”

Ellen Garvens, "Flypaper", 2016, inkjet print on paper, 15 x 20”

Tip! You can easily scroll between the images using the arrow keys on your keyboard.

Fred Birchman, "Witness", 2016, mixed media on paper, 50 x 19"

Fred Birchman, "Overture", 2016, mixed media on paper, 38 x 25”

Fred Birchman, "Hatchet Job", mixed media on paper, 50 x 19"

Brian Blackham, "Sugar Cubes", 2016, oil on panel, 12 x 16"

Brian Blackham, "Glass, Sugar Cube", 2014, oil on panel, 46"x34"

Marsha Burns, Untitled (triptych, image #1), 1983, unique 20 x 24” Polaroid, 28 x 22” paper size, 32 x 25.25” framed

Marsha Burns, Untitled (triptych, image #2), 1983, unique 20 x 24” Polaroid, 28 x 22” paper size, 32 x 25.25” framed

Marsha Burns, Untitled (triptych, image #3), 1983, unique 20 x 24” Polaroid, 28 x 22” paper size, 32 x 25.25” framed

Joe Crookes, "Working the Eyebrow: The Erection Company Ironworker", 1988, 35mm color photo, edition of 4, 14" x 11"

Joe Crookes, "Seattle Skyline", 1998, 35mm color photo, 1/5, 19.5 x 19.5”, 27.5 x 27.5” framed

John Fadeff, "Gas Station Robbery", 2016, ink on paper, 17.5 x 23"

John Fadeff, "Ghost Story", 2016, ink on paper, 20 x 13"

John Fadeff, "Scylla and Charybdis", 2016, ink on paper, 13 x 20"

Ellen Garvens, "Poison 2000", 2016, inkjet print on paper, 20 x 15”

Ellen Garvens, "Drapery Cord", 2016, inkjet print on paper, 15 x 10” or 18 x 24”

Jim Holl, "All the Living Things: Doll’s Eye, 6.5.16", oil on Shikishi Kochi handmade paper, 9.5 x 9.5”,

“All the Livings Things: Rosary Pea, 6.10.16″, 2016, oil on Shikishi Kochi handmade paper, 9.5″ x 9.5”

Jim Holl, "All the Living Things: Deadly Nightshade, 6.1.16", oil on Shikishi Kochi handmade paper, 9.5 x 9.5”

Jim Holl, "All the Livings Things: Monkshood, 6.30.16″, 2016, oil on Shikishi Kochi handmade paper, 9.5″ x 9.5”

Jim Holl, "All the Living Things: Hemlock 6.15.16", 2016, oil on paper, 9.5 x 9.5"

Michael Howard, Crucifixion 2 (after R.V.R.), 2016, water, gouache on paper, 18” x 12”

Michael Howard, "Crucifixion 1 (after R.V.R.)", 2016, watercolor, gouache on paper, 18” x 12”

Michael Howard, "Crucifixion 2 (after R.V.R.)", 2016, watercolor, gouache on paper, 18” x 12”

Amy Huddleston, "Green Bag", 2016, casein, 17 x 28"

Amy Huddleston, "Bagged", 2016, charcoal on paper, 24 x 18"

Amy Huddleston, "Out of Hand Out of Mind", 2016, oil, 7 x 19”

Amy Huddleston, "Hoodie", 2016, charcoal on paper, 24 x 18”

Caroline Kapp, "Consumed", 2016, 7.75 x 10.25"

Caroline Kapp, "Consumed", 2016, inkjet print, 7.75 x 10.25"

Caroline Kapp, Kapp, "Planted", 2016, inkjet print, 8 x 10"

Caroline Kapp, "Planted", 2016, inkjet print, 8 x 10"

Caroline Kapp, "Compressed", 2016, inkjet print, 16.5 x 21.5"

Dianne Kornberg, "Madonna Bomb 2", 2012, archival pigment print, 31" x 20” image, 32.5 x 21.5" framed

Riva Lehrer, "Adhesion", 2016, acrylic on panel, 6 x 12"

Brian Murphy, "Cigars, Donuts", ceramic

Anne Petty, "Post Hunt", 2015, oil on vellum, 8.5 x 5.5”, 13.25 x 10.25” framed

Anne Petty, "Fish Hunter", 2016, oil on canvas, 24 x 30"

Anne Petty, "The Hunter’s Hole", 2016, oil on paper, 6 x 6”, 10.75 x 10.75” framed

Anne Petty, "The Trap", 2015, oil on vellum, 11 x 14”, 14 x 17.25” framed

Anne Petty, "Winter Coat", 2016, oil on paper, 9 x 12”, 13.75 x 16.75” framed

Anne Petty, "Under the Table", 2010, oil on canvas, 60 x 44"

Elizabeth Ockwell, "Dover Beach I", 2001, mixed media on paper, 47.75 x 35",

Elizabeth Ockwell, "Dover Beach No. 5", June 2016, etching ink transfer, black gesso, nautical chart, 46.5 x 33”

Glenn Rudolph, "Helicopter Logging, Camus Prairie RR", 1992, archival inkjet print, 24 x 37”

Glenn Rudolph, "Gun Show, Boise, ID, 1992", archival inkjet print, 24 x 37"

Glenn Rudolph, "Lisel, Spring", 1987, archival inkjet print, 24 x 31"

Graham Shutt, "The New Oxford Annotated Bible / With the Apocrypha / Expanded Edition / Revised Standard Version / An Ecumenical Study Bible / Oxford", 2016, archival inkjet print, 18 x 12"

Kathy Vargas, "Masks Children Wear, Piggy", 2014, hand-colored gelatin silver print, 20x24" image, 24 x 30" framed

Kathy Vargas, "Masks Children Wear, Tortured Child Looking Through Borrowed Roses", 2013, hand-colored gelatin silver print, 20 x 24” paper size, 24 x 30” framed

Kathy Vargas, "Masks Children Wear, Vampire", 2013, hand-colored gelatin silver print, 20 x 24” paper size, 24 x 30” framed

Evelyn Woods, "Twisted #2", 2016, oil on canvas, 36 x 36"

Evelyn Woods, "Silence", 2016, oil on board, 16 x 12"

About "Things That Kill" curated by Norman Lundin, September 1 - October 29, 2016

In our last thematic show, Observing Observing (a white cup), the content (a white cup) was essentially emotionally neutral, devoid of psychological associations. The success of a given work depended upon the artist’s creative abilities at observation to give the work meaning beyond description.

In Things That Kill, because of all the psychological associations, the content is the polar opposite of the “white cup.” It is this red button content that is challenging. For an artist the difficulty comes in the handling of such content in a manner that the subject matter does not get “front loaded” and subjugate the artwork. “Front loading”* must be resisted by all means—artists necessarily need to keep in mind that subject matter is at the service of the artwork; the artwork is not at the service of the subject matter (unless you’re doing propaganda).

There is another approach to the subject matter problem that an artist might choose for this exhibition, and that is working with content, which in itself may be innocuous and passive, but in this context is psychologically and emotionally loaded. Consider, for example, such varied assassins as leaded water, pills, red meat, too much sun…. in fact, too much of anything can kill. Consider, for a moment more, that of the many things that kill, countless are appealing, beautiful and fatal, seducing artist as well as viewer. How to handle these “killers” in such a way that the intended expressive implications are conveyed, is as formidable an artistic challenge as engaging the more overt content implied by the show’s title.

Titles, for exhibitions, are like sign posts: they aim you toward an intended destination, but to get there, you still must walk the distance on your own. So, view this show with a certain perspective. To wit, that while the artists in this exhibition approach the theme in various ways, they essentially adhere to the intent implied by the title. - Norman Lundin

*“Front loading”: a term describing a work of art that depends principally upon emotions triggered by content for its realization.

Artists: Fred Birchman, Brian Blackham, Marsha Burns, Joe Crookes, John Fadeff, Ellen Garvens, Jim Holl, Michael Howard, Amy Huddleston, Caroline Kapp, Dianne Kornberg, Riva Lehrer, Brian Murphy, Elizabeth Ockwell, Anne Petty, Glenn Rudolph, Graham Shutt, Kathy Vargas and Evelyn Woods