Feb 21st 2016

Alex Chitty: Turning Spoons into Forks

@ Hyde Park Art Center

5020 S. Cornell Avenue Chicago, IL

Opening Sunday, February 21st, from 3PM - 5PM

On view through Sunday, April 3rd

Artist Alex Chitty liberates ordinary objects from their mundane life in her solo show Turning Spoons into Forks. Muted elements of our complex and vibrant physical surroundings are intentionally amplified in Chitty’s work. Through the studied placement of objects, photographs, and sculptures, she assembles artworks-as-physical-invitations that ask viewers to regard detail and quirk. Her solo exhibition at the Art Center highlights new and recent conceptual work in sculpture and photography that draw from historical furniture design and commercial storefront display.

According to Chitty, “It wouldn’t take much to turn a spoon into a fork. You could cut away the center of the spoon bowl, and leave two prongs remaining. You could simply label it as a fork, or just use it in exactly the same way a fork is used. Is a spoon still a spoon if it is used like a fork?”

This association between objects and their use inform assumptions that direct the way we approach and value an item. Additionally, the comparison of elements and textures in Chitty’s work—combining porcelain, steel, digital photography, and fabric, among other materials—help construct new narratives that transcend the object and offer it up for new interpretations.

A concurrent exhibition of Chitty’s work titled, the sun-drenched neutral that goes with everything is on view at Patron Gallery from January 23 until March 5, 2016.

Alex Chitty (b. 1979, Miami) is an interdisciplinary artist based in Chicago. Her present work is characterized by a strong sculptural quality that brings forth a reservoir of memories onto new contexts through methods of collection and interpretation. She received a Bachelor of Fine Art from Smith College (MA) and a Master in Fine Arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she is Professor in the Sculpture and Printmedia departments. Her works have been exhibited in galleries across Chicago, and across the United States. She is currently represented by Patron (Chicago).

Official Website

More events on this date

Tags: , ,