Monday February 18, 7pm
AN INTRODUCTION TO USEFUL PICTURES
the launch of the online platform useful pictures
with founders Eric Shows, Zach Nader, and Grant Billingsley
approximately 60 minutes
Image courtesy of useful pictures
Microscope Gallery is pleased to host the official launch of the online platform useful pictures with a conversation, including the 3 founders and artists Eric Shows, Zach Nader, and Grant Billingsley, on current directions in contemporary photographic based works. Useful pictures is an artist-run platform for investigating contemporary photographic practices in response to the current climate of ubiquitous instant image sharing through Instagram, Flickr, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and the entirety of the internet.
With a focus on contemporary artists working with photographic images in a broad spectrum, irrespective of final format, the panel invites the audience to discuss questions including:
How are artists engaging with and resisting the current torrent of images?
Why do artists continue to make photographic images in such a climate?
Is current language used to discuss such works sufficient, or is there a need for expansion?
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Eric Shows is an artist and imaging professional based in Brooklyn, NY. He has exhibited at Jack the Pelican Presents and the Convent of St. Cecilia in Brooklyn and Woodsmoke Systems in Braddock, PA. He was chosen as a recipient of the Joan Mitchell MFA grant in 2009. In the spring, Shows will be unveiling a new collaborative project with an auto-generative light and sound installation. Shows has an MFA from University of Wisconsin-Madison
Zach Nader is a Brooklyn, NY based artist that investigates uses and usefulness of images. Nader has recently exhibited at Jen Bekman Gallery, NURTUREart, Magenta Flash Forward Festival with Humble Arts Foundation, Houston Center for Photography, and Yaffo 23 in Jerusalem, Israel. He also conducts interviews with artists for layflat.org. Nader has an MFA from Texas Tech University.
Grant Billingsley is a painter and sculptor currently living in Anthony, NM as a resident of the Border Art Residency. He has recently exhibited at Craighead Green Gallery (Dallas, TX), Rockport Center for the Arts (Rockport, TX), K Space Contemporary (Corpus Christie, TX), and was awarded Honorable Mention in the Texas National 2011 at The Cole Art Center (Nacogdoches, TX). In 2012, Billingsley participated in Michael Clark’s dance performance at the Whitney Biennial. In March, Billingsley will be a visiting artist at New Mexico State University. Billingsley has an MFA from Texas Tech University.
More info at: http://www.usefulpictur.es, http://www.ericshows.com, http://zachnader.com, http://grantbillingsley.com
