JPS Gallery is delighted to present a group exhibition titled Hullabaloo* to celebrate the triumphant characteristics of this era through various artistic representations of the human body expressed by visual language. This exhibition features four emerging artists with practices that observe and embrace the human form. Through the progressive lens of Florine Imo, Isabelle McCormick, Krzysztof Strzelecki and Lokz Phoenix, the presented works serve as documentation of their generation in the current times we all happen to witness.
We live in a time where we are inundated with a ceaseless flow of news and social media. Feelings of conflict, disorientation and absence in this modern world have become the norm. Everyday subsistence could be defined by uncertainty and confusion, topped with finding oneself on edge at any given moment. This exhibition investigates what it means to be human, living in a body that feels and exists, living in a world torn by conflicts, pandemics, and various real and surreal threats, wrapped under the blanket of social media and never-stopping news feeds. How does the new generation of artists respond to the seemingly chaotic modern times? What comes out as a final creation? Perhaps a well-manoeuvred manipulation of various visual languages. One is a given, that creation is infinite, almost embraced into human existence, and so is the existence of humans.
*a clamorous noise, uproar or commotion, made by people.
Florine Imo | Austria
Florine Imo’s paintings evolve around her figures, which she sees as part of herself and actors who play out different life scenarios. Her paintings fluctuate between euphoric party scenes, playful, stereotypical representations of females and secretive meetings that the viewer just stumbled upon and interrupted. Her work creates a universe where women turn into mischievous, secretive, imperfect goddesses and start to live a life of their own.
Isabelle McCormick | United States
Isabelle McCormick employs traditional oil painting techniques to render virtual spaces that further unpack how internet culture remodels the visual language of femininity. Reoccurring across her paintings are representations of a hollow, plastic and malleable standalone avatar glued to her phone screen. Painting is a way for McCormick to navigate the distance between the bodily self and social media façade.
Krzysztof Strzelecki | Poland
Krzysztof Strzelecki explores the relationship between man and the environment, contrasting nature’s greatness with the human form’s fragility. His work often engages with queer culture and probes how societies react to the LGBTQ+ communities. He also challenges the idealised form and embraces the unpredictable beauty of imperfection – each piece is unique and tells its own narrative.
Lokz Phoenix | Hong Kong
Inspired by the female body as it is part of her identity and a visual language that best represents her, Lokz Phoenix’s artworks offer an intimate view into the emotion, power and sensitivity within them. The sense of femininity instilled within her ceramics and oil paintings reveals Lokz’s intention to provide viewers with an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the female body through different mediums.
Opening Reception: Saturday, 30th July 2022, 5 – 8 pm
Exhibition Dates: 30th July – 30th August, 2022
Venue: JPS Gallery (Tokyo), 1/F, Tobu 2nd Building, 6-27-4, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0001, Japan
