Bruno David is pleased to present "FLUID", an exhibition by artist Chris Kahler. This will be his 13th solo exhibition with the gallery.
The ”FLUID” series marks Kahler’s return to works on paper. These pieces explore dynamic systems that blur the distinction between the macro and micro. The viewer contends with whether the work portrays a beginning or end while mapping an image of transformation, mutation, and system conflicts in their mind’s eye. These works are constructed of layers that shift between varying opacities and transparencies. Unique to this body of work are collaged mixed media that push beyond the surface substrate. Geometric forms are used as a metaphor for the self-replicating shapes within biological systems. Using natural and synthetic colors influenced by the high-tech and digital age, Kahler exposes the overlapping relationships between abstract expressionism, color field, psychedelia, op, and pop art to create provocative works on paper.
David Olsen recently wrote about Kahler’s work: “Forms both amorphous and geometrical alternately shift, batch, and huddle upon the surface; …Kahler’s new visual vocabulary is productively, gorgeously claustrophobic in the same way that a map, when viewed from a reasonable distance, suggests that everything is actually pretty close, an entire world within reach. These works anticipate the figuration of our fraught times while also reminding us of the prime mover of painting as such—the containment of that which is viscous, three-dimensional, and fluid.”
Chris Kahler received his B.F.A. at Ohio Wesleyan University and M.F.A. from Northwestern University, Chicago, IL. Kahler has been the subject of numerous one-person exhibitions at venues including the Richard Ross Art Museum, Delaware, OH (2014); Anita Wooten Gallery, Valencia College, Orlando, FL (2011); John P. Weatherhead Gallery, University of Saint Francis, Fort Wayne, IN (2009); Museum of Surgical Science, Chicago, IL (2002). Chris Kahler is the Chair of the Department of Art + Design, Director of the School of the Arts and Professor of Painting at Eastern Illinois University. In conjunction with the exhibition, Bruno David Gallery will publish a catalogue of the artist’s work with an in-depth exhibition history and bibliography.
