Shaky Town
ON VIEW
May 11-30, 2024
ARTISTS
Justin Guthrie, Nathan See, Thomas Macie
SUMMARY
Curated by Public Notice, “Shaky Town” features intriguing works from LA-based artists Justin Guthrie, Nathan See, and Thomas Macie. Delving into the eclectic essence of Los Angeles, known colloquially in the 1980s as 'Shaky Town' by long haul truckers, this show explores the city's seismic activities and turbulent politics through the lens of history, mythology, and popular culture. The artists utilize these themes as foundational elements to challenge and engage with contemporary narratives, weaving together tales of mythology and hidden truths within their creative expressions.
The space begins with two of Justin Guthrie’s shadow boxes, “Glitter” and “Open Secrets”, made from found objects collected and combined to create a sort of tell all of two imagined characters. Familiar iconography from popular culture, spirituality, and art history are combined and sandwiched together behind glass to create what Joseph Cornell calls “Poetic Theater”. This iconography is also called to attention by the literature in both “History/wisdom is the sum of all parts” #1 and #2.
Thomas Macie uses found objects in his work and connects the entire show to Los Angeles. All objects in his works are found throughout LA and are spliced together and worked and reworked until they are pushed to the limits of their objectivity. By printing on, dyeing, sewing, and fastening together things that were once detritus on the street, Macie creates sculptures that are an homage to the lives lived in Los Angeles – a snapshot of the everyday.
Carrying the throughline of history and found objects throughout the space are Nathan See’s large-scale sculptures. Classical looking imagery that appears as if it was once pasted on the street and covered by ads or shredded from the wall is adhered to the sculptures. At the back of the space sits “apocalypticthirsttrapuncannyvalleyneocon”, a piece that loosely references the work of Anthony Caro, who is known as one of the fathers of twentieth century sculpture and used found “industrial” objects in his work.
