Matthew Chambers has been known to use many interesting materials to create some of his artwork. Some of the art premiered over a year ago at the Rental Gallery consisted of works made using hamburgers, cats, and glass bottles. The most interesting artwork there, perhaps, were those which was made up of “strips of canvases deemed beyond help or hope.” These pieces, called “slash paintings” are comprised solely of things that would normally be thrown in the trash, which, as Chambers feels provides, “the perfect testament to the old adage, out of failure comes success.” He takes the old and ugly, and transforms it into something new and beautiful.
(Sorry the picture is so tiny! It wouldn’t let me make it any larger.) This picture especially reminds me of the artist’s work who made pictures using chewed gum. And the idea is the same–taking something that most people would discard as garbage and using it to create something very cool. It seems as if I could have done something like this, but maybe it takes one person to come up with the idea first, and coming up with that idea in itself is a work of artistic genius.
Chamber’s most recent art exhibit at Untitled (on Orchard Street) features 36 vertical four-by-eight canvases of the slash paintings. This show differs from the last in that there are two large books upon entering the exhibit that explain each piece in detail. They tell the story behind each of Chamber’s works, providing insight into his creative mind.
Interesting. I like the composition of the colors, and I also like very much the way he paints the frame on the first “painting” directly onto the strips of paper. It makes an interesting interplay between the “canvas” and the frame. You should make a trip to the downtown galleries!