state presents Strange Reprise, an exhibition of work by San Francisco Bay Area artists Maria Forde and Chris Thorson. Strange Reprise examines the artistic production of two artists who engage with the history of popular culture and its potential to shape personal and cultural identities. Forde’s newest collection of drawings examine the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Focusing mostly on American Westerns and their uncomfortable tropes -- mstate is pleased to present Strange Reprise, an exhibition of work by San Francisco Bay Area artists Maria Forde and Chris Thorson. Strange Reprise examines the artistic production of two artists who engage with the history of popular culture and its potential to shape personal and cultural identities. Forde will present her new series, Western Drawings, and Chris Thorson will be showing new work from her Tabula Rasa and Internal Monologue series. The exhibition will be on view from December 10 through January 28 with an opening reception on December 10 from 6-8pm. The reception is free and open to the public. Both artists will be in attendance.
Maria Forde’s work is a recording of facts, moments and observations about the world. In a journalistic vein, the artist organizes what she sees and endeavors to find common threads in shared experiences. Her newest collection of drawings delves into the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Forde focuses mostly on American Westerns ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s, and their uncomfortable tropes: masculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages. The intrigue lies in the absurdity of capturing actors who themselves are portraying a fiction, which Forde then renders through drawings, creating yet another layer of removal. This space provides the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Chris Thorson’s latest body of work, Tabula Rasa, is a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. The works are inherently nostalgic, recalling childhood obsessions and early experiences of collecting. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Through the guise of children’s entertainment, toxic ideologies are sugarcoated, packaged and sent to play. Alongside Tabula Rasa, Thorson will exhibit sculptural reliefs from Internal Monologue, a series that depicts the backsides of hand held mirrors. In the pieces, the familiar mirror form omits a reflective surface, denying a physical reflection of the body, instead suggesting self-reckoning and internalization.
Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a mirror, a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
Maria Forde is a San Francisco-based artist. She works in drawing, painting and is well known in the Mission District for her beloved zines. She received her MFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 2003. Forde has exhibited her work locally and nationally at Needles and Pens, Pop Up Magazine, Alley Cat Books, Gallery 16, Baer Ridgeway, Little Tree Gallery and The Lab. Her work has been written about multiple times in The San Francisco Chronicle, The SF Weekly, The San Francisco Bay Guardian, 7x7 and KQED. Her work is in the permanent collections of Judd Apatow, The Capital Group and The San Francisco Arts Commission.
Chris Thorson is a Bay Area-based artist. She currently works at the cross section of sculpture and painting. She received her MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2004. She has exhibited her work locally and nationally in The Napa Valley Museum, Rena Bransten Gallery, Headlands Center for the Arts, Land and Sea and The Bedford Gallery. Her work has been written about in the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED, SFAQ and ArtSlant.
state.asculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages -- they provide the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Thorson’s presents a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
show less
Maria Forde’s work is a recording of facts, moments and observations about the world. In a journalistic vein, the artist organizes what she sees and endeavors to find common threads in shared experiences. Her newest collection of drawings delves into the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Forde focuses mostly on American Westerns ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s, and their uncomfortable tropes: masculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages. The intrigue lies in the absurdity of capturing actors who themselves are portraying a fiction, which Forde then renders through drawings, creating yet another layer of removal. This space provides the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Chris Thorson’s latest body of work, Tabula Rasa, is a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. The works are inherently nostalgic, recalling childhood obsessions and early experiences of collecting. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Through the guise of children’s entertainment, toxic ideologies are sugarcoated, packaged and sent to play. Alongside Tabula Rasa, Thorson will exhibit sculptural reliefs from Internal Monologue, a series that depicts the backsides of hand held mirrors. In the pieces, the familiar mirror form omits a reflective surface, denying a physical reflection of the body, instead suggesting self-reckoning and internalization.
Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a mirror, a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
Maria Forde is a San Francisco-based artist. She works in drawing, painting and is well known in the Mission District for her beloved zines. She received her MFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 2003. Forde has exhibited her work locally and nationally at Needles and Pens, Pop Up Magazine, Alley Cat Books, Gallery 16, Baer Ridgeway, Little Tree Gallery and The Lab. Her work has been written about multiple times in The San Francisco Chronicle, The SF Weekly, The San Francisco Bay Guardian, 7x7 and KQED. Her work is in the permanent collections of Judd Apatow, The Capital Group and The San Francisco Arts Commission.
Chris Thorson is a Bay Area-based artist. She currently works at the cross section of sculpture and painting. She received her MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2004. She has exhibited her work locally and nationally in The Napa Valley Museum, Rena Bransten Gallery, Headlands Center for the Arts, Land and Sea and The Bedford Gallery. Her work has been written about in the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED, SFAQ and ArtSlant.
state.asculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages -- they provide the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Thorson’s presents a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
state presents Strange Reprise, an exhibition of work by San Francisco Bay Area artists Maria Forde and Chris Thorson. Strange Reprise examines the artistic production of two artists who engage with the history of popular culture and its potential to shape personal and cultural identities. Forde’s newest collection of drawings examine the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Focusing mostly on American Westerns and their uncomfortable tropes -- mstate is pleased to present Strange Reprise, an exhibition of work by San Francisco Bay Area artists Maria Forde and Chris Thorson. Strange Reprise examines the artistic production of two artists who engage with the history of popular culture and its potential to shape personal and cultural identities. Forde will present her new series, Western Drawings, and Chris Thorson will be showing new work from her Tabula Rasa and Internal Monologue series. The exhibition will be on view from December 10 through January 28 with an opening reception on December 10 from 6-8pm. The reception is free and open to the public. Both artists will be in attendance.
Maria Forde’s work is a recording of facts, moments and observations about the world. In a journalistic vein, the artist organizes what she sees and endeavors to find common threads in shared experiences. Her newest collection of drawings delves into the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Forde focuses mostly on American Westerns ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s, and their uncomfortable tropes: masculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages. The intrigue lies in the absurdity of capturing actors who themselves are portraying a fiction, which Forde then renders through drawings, creating yet another layer of removal. This space provides the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Chris Thorson’s latest body of work, Tabula Rasa, is a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. The works are inherently nostalgic, recalling childhood obsessions and early experiences of collecting. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Through the guise of children’s entertainment, toxic ideologies are sugarcoated, packaged and sent to play. Alongside Tabula Rasa, Thorson will exhibit sculptural reliefs from Internal Monologue, a series that depicts the backsides of hand held mirrors. In the pieces, the familiar mirror form omits a reflective surface, denying a physical reflection of the body, instead suggesting self-reckoning and internalization.
Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a mirror, a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
Maria Forde is a San Francisco-based artist. She works in drawing, painting and is well known in the Mission District for her beloved zines. She received her MFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 2003. Forde has exhibited her work locally and nationally at Needles and Pens, Pop Up Magazine, Alley Cat Books, Gallery 16, Baer Ridgeway, Little Tree Gallery and The Lab. Her work has been written about multiple times in The San Francisco Chronicle, The SF Weekly, The San Francisco Bay Guardian, 7x7 and KQED. Her work is in the permanent collections of Judd Apatow, The Capital Group and The San Francisco Arts Commission.
Chris Thorson is a Bay Area-based artist. She currently works at the cross section of sculpture and painting. She received her MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2004. She has exhibited her work locally and nationally in The Napa Valley Museum, Rena Bransten Gallery, Headlands Center for the Arts, Land and Sea and The Bedford Gallery. Her work has been written about in the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED, SFAQ and ArtSlant.
state.asculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages -- they provide the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Thorson’s presents a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
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Maria Forde’s work is a recording of facts, moments and observations about the world. In a journalistic vein, the artist organizes what she sees and endeavors to find common threads in shared experiences. Her newest collection of drawings delves into the Hollywood tradition of Westerns and the way they have captured the collective imagination of multiple generations. Forde focuses mostly on American Westerns ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s, and their uncomfortable tropes: masculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages. The intrigue lies in the absurdity of capturing actors who themselves are portraying a fiction, which Forde then renders through drawings, creating yet another layer of removal. This space provides the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Chris Thorson’s latest body of work, Tabula Rasa, is a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. The works are inherently nostalgic, recalling childhood obsessions and early experiences of collecting. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Through the guise of children’s entertainment, toxic ideologies are sugarcoated, packaged and sent to play. Alongside Tabula Rasa, Thorson will exhibit sculptural reliefs from Internal Monologue, a series that depicts the backsides of hand held mirrors. In the pieces, the familiar mirror form omits a reflective surface, denying a physical reflection of the body, instead suggesting self-reckoning and internalization.
Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a mirror, a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
Maria Forde is a San Francisco-based artist. She works in drawing, painting and is well known in the Mission District for her beloved zines. She received her MFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 2003. Forde has exhibited her work locally and nationally at Needles and Pens, Pop Up Magazine, Alley Cat Books, Gallery 16, Baer Ridgeway, Little Tree Gallery and The Lab. Her work has been written about multiple times in The San Francisco Chronicle, The SF Weekly, The San Francisco Bay Guardian, 7x7 and KQED. Her work is in the permanent collections of Judd Apatow, The Capital Group and The San Francisco Arts Commission.
Chris Thorson is a Bay Area-based artist. She currently works at the cross section of sculpture and painting. She received her MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2004. She has exhibited her work locally and nationally in The Napa Valley Museum, Rena Bransten Gallery, Headlands Center for the Arts, Land and Sea and The Bedford Gallery. Her work has been written about in the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED, SFAQ and ArtSlant.
state.asculine and feminine binaries, Manifest Destiny and Native Americans as savages -- they provide the viewer with a new opportunity to look at the construction of identity, the stories we are fed to make order out of chaos, and the way we seek to make sense of our place in the world.
Thorson’s presents a collection of cast and painted urethane sculptures that represents a cache of found sticker albums circa 1980. Under a critical gaze, the stickers of cartoon characters and pop icons shed their innocence, revealing allegiance with consumerism, narcissism, racism and patriarchy. Strange Reprise brings these bodies of work together to consider the seemingly benign seepage of popular culture into the collective consciousness, specifically the young, impressionable minds of youth. How does a sticker book or an old movie on TV shape us? How do we grow up to recognize and untangle ourselves from the things we were once drawn to but didn’t fully understand?
show less
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1295 Alabama Street, San Francisco, CA 94110
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