parrasch heijnen unveiled Alteronce Gumby | Charles Ross with an opening reception on February 24, 2024. This cross-generational exhibition of new works features Bronx, NY-based painter Alteronce Gumby (b. 1985, Harrisburg, PA) as well as select works by seminal New Mexico-based land artist Charles Ross (b. 1937, Philadelphia, PA). Not to worry if you missed the opening, as the exhibition runs through March 30, 2024.
Alteronce Gumby | Charles Ross
Alteronce Gumby created this new body of work in direct response to his recent visit to Charles Ross’ monumental earthwork, Star Axis (projected completion 2026), located near Ross’ off the grid studio in northeast New Mexico.
In the summer of 2023, Gumby spent an evening alone in Star Tunnel, an element of the complex constructed in alignment with the Earth’s axis and the North Star Polaris. As one ascends the tunnel, the framing of Polaris shifts, revealing cosmic alignments of the past, present, and also future. This experience directly inspired Gumby’s two-panel, mixed media painting Starry Night (2024). Among gradations of color and texture, spiral galaxy formations populate the work, reflecting light and shifting perspectives through glass layered and tinted with acrylic paint.
The Art
Often referencing site-specific experiences, Gumby’s paintings are embedded with natural elements such as metals and gemstones originating from mineral-rich areas, including quartz mined by the artist in Mount Ida, Arkansas and asteroid particles the artist recovered from Meteor Crater in Winslow, Arizona. Gumby sources materials to convey a cosmic perspective. Channeling the geological history of these minerals, his paintings contain energy, the metaphysical aspect of color and light.
In conversation with Gumby’s new paintings are four select vintage works by Charles Ross: Tapered Column (1992/2004), a work from his prism series, as well as three works from his solar burns series are featured in the exhibition.
On view: February 24 – March 30, 2024
What: Alteronce Gumby | Charles Ross
Where: Parrasch Heijnen, 1326 South Boyle Avenue, LA, 90023
When: Running through February 30, 2024
Website: https://parrasch-heijnen.com/
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