855 Folsom Street#108San Francisco, CA 94107Google Map »
Opening April 3, 6-9pm
Peanut Gallery is pleased to present the work of Jesse Hlebo in a solo exhibition entitled Still, Life. Addressing the themes of fear, value and loss, rejection and pain, Hlebo’s work is a result of multiple processes of mediation and removal; layering damage upon damage and challenging notions of what defines the seemingly perfect nature of mass-reproduction. For his exhibition, Hlebo utilizes screen prints, videos, and audio to create a focused viewing experience in a subtly frustrating environment.
Upon approaching the gallery, the viewer is confronted with a video monitor placed behind the main window. During the day the image on the screen cannot be viewed with ease, engaging the viewer through an obstructive experience; the screen shows a slightly trembling hand whose midsection is bruised. Once the gallery is entered, an audio loop of the artists voice is heard repeating the phrase “Maybe things will be better.” Headphones play the same phrase and accompany a projection of a trembling hand writing, “Maybe things will be better” repeatedly on a wall until the words are no longer legible. The image is projected from inside a slightly askew drywall column placed close to the main wall. Due to the angle of the column, the projected image permits only one viewer at a time to see it. Three large screen prints of scans of dust reference 70s American Conceptual art yet urge a more contemporary dialogue due to their mode of production. The dust returns to a space of uniqueness through this transference of representation from the physical to the digital and back again. In affect gaining value that wouldn’t otherwise exist.
A compendium of short writings related to Still, Life by the artist is also available.
Jesse Hlebo (b. 1988) is an artist who lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. He has had solo and group exhibitions across the U.S. and in Japan. Most recently, Jesse curated the inaugural MtyMx All Ages Art and Music Festival in Monterrey, Mexico. He is the editor of _ Quarterly, an experimental arts and literature publication and is also the founder of Swill Children, a small press/record label that facilitates online projects in conjunction with physical components. Jesse is currently working on a collaborative book with Milano Chow/Medium Rare. In May 2010, Jesse will receive a BFA in Photography at Parsons The New School For Design.
