VERBLIST | E.TAY Gallery

VERBLIST - curated by Mark Epstein and Christina Papanicolaou

featuring 27 artists

Opening Reception: September 13, 6-8pm

On view: 9.13 - 10.1

E.Tay gallery is pleased to present “VERBLIST”, on view from September 13 - October 15, 2016. The title of the exhibition references a lengthy list of verbs written on two small sheets of paper by a young Richard Serra between 1967 and 1968 that served as a storehouse of ideas for his studio practice. The primary importance of actions over materials within his practice is highlighted in a 1977 interview, in which Serra states that he wrote the list “as a way of applying various activities to unspecified materials.” He added, “The language structured my activities in relation to materials which had the same function as the transitive verbs.”

Mark Joshua Epstein has mirrored these sentiments in

“VERBLIST”, an exhibition that brings together

twenty-seven contemporary artists, each with a work that

explores an action from the first column of Serra’s list.

Although the assembled artists use a host of different materials and processes, the pieces in the exhibition share a kind of humility that’s at odds with Serra’s most iconic and monumental creations. Through scale, medium, or simplicity of gesture, the works project a quiet power. They hum rather than shout, prompting further questions about the link between text and object and the creative possibilities that emerge from the distance between the two.

Jennifer Shepard (to cut)

Ashley Lyon (to sever)

Denise Treizman (to drop)

Josh Azzarella (to remove)

Matt Scobey (to simplify)

Sharona Eliassaf (to differ)

Leah Wolff (to disarrange)

Gina Hunt (to open)

Tiffany Calvert (to mix)

Carrie Moyer (to splash)

Allison Lacher (to knot)

Kerry Downey (to spill)