James Leonard – 927 Days at Sea

Sepember 11th-October 2nd

Events:
Saturday September 17th, 8pm – if you look up” buy Anna Azrieli and Performance by Joseph Keckler
Wednesday Sept 21st, 3:30pm – James Leonard is introducing the program “Vagabonds!” with a FREE class. Sign up
NOTE: New Date! Sunday October 2nd, 7pm – Miho Suzuki: 100 Days After

James Leonard’s multi-disciplinarian works are drawn from his interaction with the world around him, touching on themes both timeless and urgent. At Open Source Gallery, Leonard is presenting “927 Days at Sea.” Witty and politically charged, the exhibition includes his “No Fishing” paintings, “Anchor and Chain” sculptures, and an “un-Suicide Note”, which “unless between now and then he has died of causes unforeseen,” still holds true.

In presenting these odd elements of Americana and distorting them through subtle shifts in form, context and scale, Leonard creates a dynamic between the viewer and the work. He writes: “I want my works to generate complex meanings, meanings that tumble from clarity into contradiction: chaos and then back again.”

Confronting the mystery of human cognition is at the heart of Leonard’s studio practice. Unable or unwilling to work consistently in one medium, he chooses the material that best suits his conceptual needs. The “No Fishing Signs” are painted on cardboard remnants, words are crossed out and others added, creating an overall affect of ironic discomfiture. His handcrafted “Anchor and Chain” contains a subtler humor. Woven from delicate wire and hot sculpted and hand ground glass, their fragility undermines the object’s traditional use, to anchor. The “un-Suicide Note” communicates with the viewer in the form of a suicide note. Leonard, however, declares his intention to live.

James Leonard’s serious concerns and cynicism regarding humanity are buoyed by a lively sense of humor. This is an artist adrift in a sea of complexity, who endeavors to fish for meaning in an absurd world.

ThreatdownPPMEatItUpYum!

Typhoon. Cyclone. Everything you’ve ever wanted.
Big boom. Hiss Bah. The music of collapse.

Deepwater. Pee Pee Em. Batten down the hatches.
Storm rising. Storm surge. Filling up with trash.

Broken reefs. Bones don’t float. Taking on some water.
Redstate. Bluestate. Blow it out your ass.

Pedigree. Filigree. Falling off the wagon.
Save your soul. Save yourself. Vessel’s sinking fast.

Get away. Got a way? Take it to the ocean.
Joyride riptide. This night could be our last.

on view now

February 11th – Feb 28th, 2012 Opening Reception: February 11th, 7-9pm Even Robarts: from the series “popsicles” Open Source is proud to present Evan Robarts and James Moore. A collaborative installation opening on Saturday, February 11th, 2012. Responding to their environment, Evan Robarts and James Moore will be presenting two site specific works intending to [...]

upcoming

Sara Bouchard: The News: Monday-Friday, Parts 1 & 2
Karl Spörk, Another Meeting
BETWEEN MOUNTAIN
Felipe Mujica: One Day This Will All Be Yours
Patrick Cadenhead

past

Leigh Davis: The Burrow (H.H.)
Open Source 2011
Open Source Soup Kitchen
Borderland Collective
Jason Reppert: Parlor Tricks
Felipe Mujica: One Day This Will All Be Yours
James Leonard – 927 Days at Sea
Soap Box Derby
Naoe Suzuki and Dramahound Productions: Mi Tigre, My Lover
Associated
Raphaela Riepl: adorable steamed sea urchin
Allison Read Smith: Thugs
Open Source Gallery 2008-2010
Soup Kitchen 2010
Pirmin Hagen: First
Nobuko: wa
ORFI nyc: live gig 2010
Peter Feigenbaum “Trainset Ghetto: Streetsmart”
Images NYC
make Soap Box Racers for the Soap Box Derby
ONE BIG WINDMILL
Open Source Residency w/Austrian Artists
Patricia Watwood: Portraits 20/10
Cornucopias: Paintings by Rachel Youens
Ondrej Brody & Kristofer Paetau: Wang Bin Torture in Commercial Quality, High Quality and Museum Quality
Akiyuki Ina: Emitting Evanescent Beauty
John Coburn: Fairlane Marauder
Soup Kitchen 12.1 – 12.24
Sara Ching-Yu Sun: Nov 7th- Nov 30
Victoria Stanton and Christian Richer: Sat Oct 10th
Patrick May: October 3 – november 2
Christian Brown: September 5 – October 1
Urban Plant Research: August 15 – August 30
Make Soap Box Racers! July 13th-August 8th
Hubert Dobler: June 6th – July 1st
Gary Baldwin: May 2nd – June 4th
Second Saturday Event: June 13, 7-10pm
Scott Groeniger: March 27 – April 26
Sara Bouchard: April 4th, 8pm
MonsterBASH | July 4th – August 15th | Party July 4th 4-7pm