Mitchell Wright (b.1976) The Snopes, 2008
July 13 – October 2, 2010
Admission is free and open to the public with suggested donation.
The art of Mitchell Wright has been described as highly emotional, intricate in its detail, and comfortable with the dynamics of the morose. Born in Verona, Mississippi, Wright utilizes memory and sentiment as foundational sources of the aesthetic experience. Contemplating notions of reminiscence and mortality while engaging the cultural influences of southern letters and music, Wright offers a window into the ghosts of the southern past and their impact on contemporary life and artistic creation.
In serving as an allusion to Wright’s own artistic journey as well as that of the post-Civil War South, the reconstruction and its visual manifestations of structures in flames exemplify the artists’ depth of application and his ability to make tangible the sense of both loss and renewal accessible through destruction. Influenced (but not necessarily derived from) the work of William Faulkner, Wright’s craft likewise emphasizes the graphic and lyrical power of the artist to expose the power of juxtaposition.
This exhibition coincides with the Thirty-Seventh Annual ?Faulkner & Yoknapatawpha Conference. This year’s conference theme, Faulkner and Film, chronicles Faulkner’s time in Hollywood, and his impact on the film genre. In addition to many other Faulkner writings, Barn Burning became a screenplay in 1980 with Tommy Lee Jones starring in the film as Ab Snopes.
Wright’s solo exhibitions include Wishful Thinking, LAS Gallery, Phoenix, AZ (2008); You, Me., White Columns, New York, NY (2006); and Daydreaming is Squeezing Night Into Day, Ewing Gallery of Art and Architecture, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN. In addition, Wright has participated in group shows such as The Merits of Silence, Gallery Min Min, Tokyo, JP (2008); The Object Direct, Heskin Contemporary, New York, NY (2008); Sonotube, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara, CA (2007).
