Explore Linder’s Art on Violence and Culture: Road Signs & Figures (SF)
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American Messenger | 349 9TH ST SF, CA 94103
Event Details
Submitted by the Event Organizer
American Messenger is thrilled to present a new exhibition featuring paintings and sculptures by the notorious local artist Charles Linder. This showcase will be on view through the end of July 2024 at their SoMa gallery space.
Linder’s latest works delve into the intertwined realms of recreation and violence, a pervasive theme in our culture. This collection launches a timely and provocative exploration that places his work between Nikki de St. Phalle’s early “assassinations” of painting and Lucio Fontana’s revolutionary “Spatial Concepts,” which blurred the lines between painting, sculpture, and life itself.
Please join us for a reception with the artist on Saturday, July 27rd, 2024, from 6-9 pm.
Use code americanmessenger for 50% off – $50 for VIP ticket (includes American Messenger t-shirt and wild boar hot dogs)
Fans of Linder assert that Maurizio Cattelan’s recent Gagosian blockbuster borrows heavily from Linder’s 1990s oeuvre. However, Linder himself is unfazed and admires Cattelan’s playful, satirical style.
Linder describes his work as an investigation of the space between art objects and their interactive dialogue. He presents a collection of bullet-riddled American road signs, reflecting the long journey of colonialist devastation and cultural dominance that defines modern America. This series serves as a commentary on America’s unique inclination towards recreational violence and its impact on daily life, while also creating a striking, unified “landscape painting” that merges rural and urban experiences.
Visitors are invited to ponder whether Linder is a gun-obsessed, right-wing radical or a left-wing eccentric with a penchant for appropriating road signs. In reality, he is neither. Linder views his work in formal terms and encourages viewers to draw their own conclusions after engaging with the entire collection.
Complementing the exhibit are life-size fiberglass figurines, which Linder rescued from The Wharf Store. Once neglected and gathering dust, these figures now stand as silent observers within the gallery.
Charles Linder has been an influential painter and sculptor in San Francisco since the early 1990s, both as an artist and a cultural promoter. He studied at the San Francisco Art Institute and later attended UC Berkeley for graduate school. More about his work can be found at www.charleslinder.com.
The exhibition is open by appointment seven days a week through the end of July.
To schedule a visit, please contact:
American Messenger
www.americanmessenger.us
Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.
Cost: FREE
Categories: Art & Museums, Geek Event, In Person, Lectures & Workshops, LGBTQ+, Literature, Live Music
