Hang-Up Gallery is kicking off the new year with (its first-ever) graphic exhibition “100BPM” by British graphic artistPatrick Thomas. The majority of the pieces will be limited editions and unique works that were created using free-form screen printing and collage, a technique the artist has been perfecting for the past 18 months while working in Berlin and Barcelona. The art on display will be interlaced with a recurring motif, a silkscreened bold heart ideogram that includes found imagery and collage. The artist’s recurring heart is appropriately symbolic for an exhibition that’s timed to coincide with the Feast of St. Valentine.
American design critic Steven Hellerhas dubbed Thomas an “icongraphiste” for his extraordinary ability to use his work to send powerful messages. Thomas’s art avoids labels and categories, and focuses instead on the art-making process—in typography and in image-making. He takes popular icons and re-purposes and re-composes them, transforming common visual imagery into societal and political commentary that is meant to provoke his viewers into questioning the world around them. Thomas regards an artwork as successful if it lends itself to multiple interpretations.
“100BPM” will be on display at Hang-Up Gallery from February 1 – March 16, 2014.
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