Graham Caldwell, Wilfredo Ortega, Pawel Wojtasik

Curated by Micaela Giovannotti

Inside OUT is an exhibition that encompasses an aesthetic and abstract dissection of images, shapes, patterns and geometries captured from Lower East Side and the Essex Street Market locations in order to engage the audience in a dialogue with the surroundings.

It proposes a visual recapitulation (or “Kodak moment”) of some of the inner elements that a visitor of the area might extrapolate via an inductive process that ensues from the immediate experience of the crossroads, streets signs, lights and of the food displayed inside the market.

The works in this exhibition contains primal references to infrastructures, organs and animals that solicit a direct and visceral visual connection.

Graham Caldwell’s ethereal glass sculptures depict an organic microcosm that is both seductive and repulsive. His natural networks of interconnected vessels and backbones of mysterious species evoke narratives of human and mythical tales as well as forms interspersed through the market counters.

Wilfredo Ortega’s color saturated wall installation is inspired by a condensed bird-eye view of the urban grid. It exposes the idiosyncratic elements of the Lower East Side streets, colors and signs while emphasizing the architectural details of the gallery space.

Pawel Wojtasik’s Pigs (2006) explores segments of the mammals’ life through a pictorial and surreal imagery. Cyclical transformation of matter in an industrial farm is referenced along with issues of animal cruelty and food consumer awareness through very animated frames depicting eager and loud pigs unaware of their destiny.

Micaela Giovannotti is a New York based independent curator and critic.