The University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery is pleased to announce “Post Wet,” an exhibition by artist Mike Rea. The exhibition opens Oct. 12, and runs through Nov. 19. A public reception will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 15 at the UIS Visual Arts Gallery in the Public Affairs Center. Admission is free and all are welcome to attend.

“Post Wet” brings together Rea’s large-scale sculptures and mixed-media works, inviting viewers into a world where popular culture, personal memory, humor and fantasy collide. Drawing from science fiction, horror, mythology, music, sports and other elements of contemporary culture, Rea transforms familiar objects and visual references into meticulously constructed, often monumental forms.

Rea’s sculptures occupy an unusual space between the recognizable and the uncanny. Familiar objects, symbols and cultural references are enlarged, altered and recombined, creating works that can initially appear playful or absurd while revealing more personal and complicated narratives upon closer examination. His work embraces both the pleasure of making and the contradictions of contemporary life, examining a culture that simultaneously critiques and celebrates excess, indulgence, vulnerability and spectacle.

At the center of Rea’s practice is an interest in the possibilities of sculpture as both object and experience. This relationship between sculpture and performance has appeared throughout his practice, including installations in which his sculptures become active participants in music, video and live performance.

Mike Rea is an artist and associate professor of sculpture at Northern Illinois University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Northern Illinois University and a master’s degree and Master of Fine Arts in in sculpture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His work has been presented in solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States, with recent exhibitions at Bertrand Productions in Philadelphia, Rockford University, Cleaner Gallery in Chicago, Bread & Salt in San Diego, Hutton Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee, and Verdant Studio in Springdale, Arkansas. His recent group exhibitions include the Pensacola Museum of Art and exhibitions presented with Bertrand Productions, Circle Contemporary at Arts of Life, Common Wealth Gallery and Cleaner Gallery + Projects.

The UIS Visual Arts Gallery is located in the Public Affairs Center in PAC 115.Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The UIS Visual Arts Gallery is an inclusive space for everyone to explore and enjoy contemporary art. All exhibitions and public programs are free and open to the public. For more information about “Post Wet” and future exhibitions, visit the UIS Visual Arts Gallery website.

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Tags: Mike Rea, Post Wet, UIS Visual Arts Gallery