02.11.10 to
03.06.10
ABEL ALEHANDRE: Familiar Ground
•
ABEL
ALEJANDRE: Familiar Ground is Alejandre's debut solo exhibition of
new work by the Los Angeles artist. Chronicling his family history, Alejandre
tackles personal issues that include masculinity, patrimony, sexuality, aggression
and isolation. In “My Fathers,” a massive woodcut measuring four
by eight feet, the artist has exquisitely rendered the image of two men. The
older man’s weathered face reveals evidence of a hard life and his eyes
fill with tears as he stares poignantly into space. Perhaps alluding to this
man’s past behavior, Alejandre has organized the composition so that
the viscous teeth of a confrontational dog line up perfectly with the old
man’s mouth, creating a stark symbolism. The younger man is illuminated,
gazing upward in contemplation, as if planning his future. The juxtaposition
of these two men is uncomfortable but like all of Alejandre’s work,
masterfully drawn and undeniably beautiful. The exhibition also includes intimately
scaled and meticulously crafted graphite drawings on primed wood panels.
Abel Alejandre’s recent exhibitions include group shows at the Mexican
Cultural Institute, Los Angeles, ChimMaya Gallery, Tropico de Nopal, I-5 Gallery
and Drawn to You: Intimate Portraits at Project_210 last year. Abel Alejandre
immigrated to Los Angeles in 1975 with his family from Apatzingan, Michoacan,
Mexico.
IMAGES
TO
COME