The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston School of the Arts will present two exhibitions during the Spoleto season. From May 27 through July 15 Eames Demetrios – Kcymaerxthaere & Paolo Ventura – Winter Stories will be on display at the gallery (161 Calhoun St., 1st floor). Winter Stories is official Spoleto Festival USA visual arts offering. The Halsey Insitute is also working with the City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs, and Charleston magazine to present Contemporary Charleston 2011: Under the Radar – A Piccolo Spoleto Festival Exhibit. The exhibit will be on display at the City Gallery at Waterfront Park (34 Prioleau St.).
An opening reception for the Eames Demetrios – Kcymaerxthaere & Paolo Ventura – Winter Stories will be held Thursday, May 26 from 5 – 7 p.m. On Saturday, May 28, Demetrios will explain how Charleston is a site of Kcymaerxthaereal history. The storytelling will begin at the Old City Jail (21 Magazine St.) at 4pm and continue at the site of Charleston’s permanent underwater plaque during the Plaque Unveiling at Sea ceremony departing by boat from 10 Wharfside Street at 7pm. The exhibition, artist lecture and opening reception are free and open to the public however there will be a $10 fee for the Plaque Unveiling at Sea.
The artists Eames Demetrios and Paolo Ventura have created parallel worlds that exist outside of our shared reality.
Los Angeles artist Eames Demetrios has been steadily producing Kcymaerxthaere, an epic, three-dimensional novel and the world’s largest public art project. As the “Geographer-at-Large”, he has developed an alternative universe that is largely consistent with our linear world, but with different stories, peoples, flora, fauna and physical laws. He utilizes brass plaques, strategically placed around the world, to commemorate this story. So far there are 90 installations in 18 countries. During the exhibition at HICA, visitors will encounter a glimpse into the Kcymaerxthaereal realm. Outside the galleries, three permanent plaques will be placed in and around Charleston, including one below the waters of Charleston Harbor. Eames Demetrios is the 2011 Quattlebaum Artist-in-Residence and Kcymaerxthaere is an official visual arts offering of Piccolo Spoleto.
In his haunting exhibition entitled Winter Stories, Italian artist, Paolo Ventura, creates large-scale photographic images of skillfully crafted miniature vignettes. The images, invented scenes from the memory banks of an old circus performer, evoke the sweet melancholy of an earlier era, but remaining timeless in their ability to resonate with contemporary audiences. Preliminary drawings and a sampling of the maquettes are featured alongside the final photographs in the exhibition at the Halsey Institute. Paolo Ventura has been selected for the Italian national pavilion of the prestigious Venice Biennale 2011. Winter Stories is the official visual arts offering of Spoleto Festival USA 2011. View the online exhibition.
Contemporary Charleston 2011: Under the Radar originated in 2006 to highlight emerging artists creating in the Lowcountry. Through the same partnerships, the project now serves as the theme for this year’s annual Piccolo Spoleto exhibition, Contemporary Charleston at the City Gallery at Waterfront Park. During the submission process, the appointed panel of local arts leaders was inspired by the diversity and quality of artwork our community is creating. From these 170 submissions, a unanimous decision was made to feature eight emerging artists. In this exhibition the viewer will see drawing, collage, painting, photography and installation by artists who deserve a closer look. The exhibit will be open from May 26-July 31 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. View an online feature.
