Brooklyn still reigns as one of the best places to find the most unique art exhibitions. And now, the trend continues with the opening of John Doe Gallery on January 13th, 2017. The gallery’s program includes a full roster of exhibitions and performances aimed at promoting a synthetic understanding of the relationship between making and perception. One of the co-curators, Kelly Koh says, “We hope for the artwork presented at John Doe to present the public with new things to experience, and over time, we hope to inculcate an attitude of seeing.”
The gallery came to realization through Director Se Yoon Park who is an artist himself. Park dealt with the challenges of trying to reach a wider audience through his artwork and was inspired. “I wanted to contribute to our community and provide a conduit between them and the public,” Park described how much of a shame it seemed for the world not see some of the art he was seeing.
The stroke of luck came when Park discovered the space on Waterbury Street in Brooklyn on the exact day the previous tenants were moving out. “Everything was perfect, the timing, location, even the façade begged to be noticed, sandwiched between two taller buildings with its elegant roof profile,” Park said.
Park paired up with co-curators Kelly Koh and Vladislav Markov to ensure the interior met gallery standards.
John Doe Gallery
The first exhibit presented by John Doe will be EFFUSION by Hollis Dark Jr. “John Doe looks for artists working to understand the effect of matter on man and man on matter. Hollis Dark Jr is a prime example of this criteria, having made vast discoveries in his medium over years of experimentation,” co-curator Vladislav Markov said of the first artist’s show.
Hollis Dark Jr has the ability to change an entire room with his artwork, as described by Koh, “The change will happen in a single instant, when the room goes dark and the work starts to glow. The best part is that I have not spoiled the surprise by revealing that the work glows in the dark – one has to be present in that moment to fully experience the perceptual and compositional shifts triggered by this environmental change.”
Hollis Dark Jr: EFFUSION
Park, Koh and Markov have spent months developing the gallery and learning about Hollis Dark’s specific processes. They’ve learned to appreciate the way his artwork is not driven by any fixed narrative. Markov reveals, “We are excited for viewers to interpret it through their own lens, and above all appreciating the innate desire to create, and the possibilities uncovered by the sheer act of making.”
Hollis Dark Jr: EFFUSION opens at the John Doe Gallery, 112 Waterbury St, Brooklyn, NY 11206, Brooklyn, NY 11206, johndoe-ny.com, January 13 – February 1, 2017.
