April 9-May 15, 2010

Mechanistic: William Betts, Ron Laboray, Relja Penezic

The work produced by these three artists is mechanically determined by processes they have developed and personalized. This exhibit presents three distinct and idiosyncratic projects all controlled by the same methodology: content is both limited and defined by technology.


Betts: I-10 Katy and Mason 2007, acrylic on canvas, 42" x 60"

William Betts acquired these images from the Texas Dept of Transportation, and reproduced them on canvas using a proprietary software system of his own design to apply thousands of drips of paint with robot-like precision. These paintings are both gorgeous, shimmering landscapes as well as a chilling reference to the ubiquitous surveillance cameras that have appeared in our public spaces.




Laboray: Flavor Country, 2010 automotive enamel and resin on aluminum, 30" x 46¼”

Ron Laboray's paintings are data based and follow appropriated scientific rules. His referenced images are pulled from pop culture, yet their identity or source is only revealed once Ron's code is unraveled. He employs a variety of technologies to produce and obscure his references, fashioning jigs to repeat tasks and use the computer to design and research. Shiny and plastic like their subject of pop culture, the materials used in the paintings are metaphorically linked to the subject.




Penezic: Mission, 2006, 33¼" x 48" ink jet print with DVD video loop, ed. 5, running time 08:00, sound: Victoria Jordanova

Relja Penezic's images use still and time-based media to capture quiet moments of poetry. His loops work like a series of shallow waves rolling onto a beach: the viewer is conscious of the changing image, yet it remains the same image.