CARNIVOROUSFLORA • DANIELLE CARRIERE • JOSHUA CICERONE
ANDREW FEDERMAN • MAGDALENA LUNA-CEBULA • OGMILLIE
EATING ME ALIVE
March 24 - April 28
There is nothing casual about compulsion. This is behavior that controls you and, once started, seems impossible to stop. Jorge Luis Borges said that it is the compulsion to write, more than talent, that makes a writer. This same insight can be applied to any art form; it is the compulsion to create that makes an artist. What starts as an itch, or a nagging conscience, quickly turns to obsession. Subconsciously, irrationally, devoid of purpose or audience - the artist is driven to create for the sake of their own being, fixated on a path that will most certainly lead to magnificence or madness. Universally we might recognize this sort of compulsion as lust or fear or guilt - at times in the guise of a virulent addiction, or else a nurturing instinct; a vampiric lover or a parasitic friend; a deeply held secret; an existential wormhole; a frenzied invention or the questioning of our very identities. The works of the six artists in this exhibit explore various strains of artistic compulsion, by way of both technique and subject matter, offering a glimpse into whatever is eating them alive.
Carnivorousflora “Tesselated Flora” Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 20 inches
The murals of NY-based Carnivorousflora can be seen across Brooklyn. Carnivorousflora’s hand-painted visuals combine a measured, mathematical precision with the wildness of 1970’s acidburn psychedelia. Mimicking nature, he creates floral patterns that take on figurative traits intertwined with bold geometric shapes, creating exciting and literally eye-popping compositions.
SHOWN LR: Crustaceous Flora (24”x20”), One-eyed Jack (20”x16”), Segundo (24”x20”)
Louisiana native Danielle Carriere uses vibrant color to celebrate life and nature in all of its forms. Carriere moves comfortably between poignant portrait work and eye-catching abstractions, employing a rich saturated palette. Her works reflect a personal journey, infused by a rich cross-cultural understanding of spirituality, ancestry and the artistic soul.
SHOWN: Koi (48”x30”), Hamer Tribe (24”x36”)
Multi-disciplinary artist Joshua Cicerone has served as co-founder and creative lead for Brooklyn events agency Good Sense & Co. since 2004. Around that time he started painting through the night, to combat stress and insomnia, and he hasn’t slept a wink since. Cicerone’s pop portraiture takes a nod from garage rock: referential and brash - with a clear sense of not taking itself too seriously.
IG: @cicerone_studio
SHOWN: Sweet Rush (30”x40”), Cake #2 (16”x20”)
Andrew Federman is a visual artist working commercially in both documentary-style live event photography, and the niche technique of hand-drawn visual note-taking. Using acrylic paint markers, Andrew’s personal works are restless biomorphic hallucinations - something between abstraction and figuration, resulting in dynamic imaginary landscapes that challenge both form and physics. Andrew practices, works and resides in NYC’s Lower East Side.
IG: @fed.ur.man
SHOWN: Learning to Swim (22”x30”), Adverse Event (22”x30”)
Magdalena Luna-Cebula's artwork explores the female figure, often nude, from the perspective of the female gaze, bringing a unique empathy and understanding to a historically male-dominated subject matter. Her work weaves in surreal elements and distortion to capture the joys and tribulations of existing in the female body. Magdalena makes a living as a NY-based Creative Director, while serving her innate urge to paint driven by pure compulsion.
SHOWN: The Octopus (18”x24”), The Lamprey (24”x30”)
OGMillie (aka Kamille Ejerta) is a NY-based, visually-impaired, rising-star muralist and contemporary artist whose work can be seen on walls and in galleries across the five boroughs. After experiencing a vision-threatening emergency, art became OGMillie’s hope and savior. Constantly experimenting with form and medium, her oil and acrylic portraits on vintage decorative mirrors serve as a poignant counterpart to her majestic street art.
IG: @ogmillie
SHOWN: Nourish (11”x13”), Abstracted Dali (29”x33”)