The Mill Yard at Stonebridge Lofts Art Exhibit Announces New Exhibit “Infinite Abyss In Motion”

Opening Reception April 28, 2:00 to 5:00PM

Exhibition dates April 28 – June 30, 2019

Stonebridge Lofts, 1120 S 2nd Street

Infinite Abyss in Motion is at the intersection of Art and Science. While science seeks to understand the natural world in which we live and beyond into the furthest infinity of space or the tiniest unseen particles in front of us, what it cannot with certainty tell us is what the particles look like.  This is where artists step in to imagine, and then visually create, what many of our world’s mysteries might look like.  Infinite Abyss in Motion imagines the “out there” question from the perspective of two artists – for Mary Simon-Casati, the infinite physical abyss, and for Jenna Murphy, the digital abyss in the infinite possibilities. Mary paints what she imagines particles might look like and how they might move and sweep across a canvas, visibly playing with the idea of an abyss that goes on and on into infinity. She strives to make the unseen not only visible, but also felt through its movement. Jenna’s digital compositions feature organic shapes that appear to dance, allowing a snapshot, and one of an infinite number of iterations, of the motion within the infinite abyss; an unseen world discovered.

Artists featured at the new show:

Mary Simon-Casati - Jenna Murphy - Opening Reception only: Brett Freund

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Mary Simon-Casati earned a BS degree in Art Ed from the U of MN and a Master of Arts in Human Development from St. Mary’s College.  After a successful career teaching art, she resumed making art as a painter/installation artist.  Simon-Casati is a recipient of an Artist Initiative Grant from the State of Minnesota.  Her current body of work is about energy, specifically particle physics.   Her mixed-media installations play with light and shadow and include 3-dimensional objects, paintings and drawings as components of an immersive experience.  

“I want to explore what science tells us about how the universe works.  How is it that the universe is made of particles I can’t see?  Working within the tradition of abstract painting and using black/white colors, I create paintings that are experiments-imaginings of how particles move and what they might look like.  I visually play with the idea of infinity-making the unseen visible through my art.”

Spiral

Email: mscasati@comcast.net, Facebook,  Instagram: @mscasati

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Sketch9Jenna Murphy, a Minneapolis based artist, has been exploring what a contemporary drawing can be in today’s digital age. With a background in Intaglio printmaking and drawing, Jenna’s recent work aims to discover similar tactile qualities through computer code generated images. Following a degree in Studio Arts at Hamline University, Jenna went on to study Interactive Design at MCAD. It was during this time that Jenna was first introduced to p5.js, a client-side JavaScript library. P5.js helped facilitate an experimental interaction with the computer, allowing Jenna the freedom to move away from traditional subject matter and explore abstract shapes and concepts. Through iteration, the shapes multiply, shift and move across the piece. Continued experimentation reveals a balanced composition; one of an infinite number just waiting to be found in the digital abyss.

“My final compositions feature organic shapes that appear to dance across the pieces,allowing the viewer a glimpse of the motion within the infinite abyss; an unseen world, discovered.”

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Gem VaseBrett Freund

“When working I think about my own definitions of preciousness and value. How does an object qualify itself as being important? Is what I’m after rare like a diamond, does it take time to grow like a crystal or is it a symbol that references a status or identity? Most importantly, how can I scrutinize hierarchies without undermining the possibility of growing in my craft? My work starts with prototypes designed from hand building, wheel throwing, and 3D printed clay. These components are a library of forms I pull from, making new combinations and discoveries as I piece slip cast parts together intuitively. I’m attracted to techniques associated with the industrial process and mass repetition but each piece I make is arranged so that no piece is ever exactly the same as another. This process puts a filter between the material and myself.”

The Mill Yard at Stonebridge Lofts thanks Luke Kleckner, Condo Development and Sales, for his generous sponsorship.