University at Buffalo (UB)
Release Date: September 22, 1998 This content is archived.
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- "Saturday morning cartoons were my catechism," says artist Mark Dean Veca.
That influence becomes obvious when you view Veca's latest two-story-tall apocalyptic mural covering all four walls -- and then some -- of UB's Lightwell Gallery in the Center for the Arts on the UB North (Amherst) Campus.
Described as, "a great liquid blob hurtling through space and suspended against the gallery wall moments before impact," the astonishing acrylic mural covers about 3,000 square feet of the gallery. The New York City artist says it is the largest and most challenging installation of his career.
The exhibit will open with a reception from 7-9 p.m. on Sept. 25 in the gallery and will remain on display until June 30, 1999.
Also opening at the reception is a multimedia exhibition of contemporary Toronto art titled "Version City," curated by John Massier of Toronto, that will remain on display in the UB Art Gallery until Dec. 20. "Version City" will feature video, large-scale sculpture, photography, paintings and prints that demonstrate how these artists often unconsciously reflect the problematic condition of Canadian identity in their work.
The UB Art Gallery and the Lightwell Gallery hours are 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and 12-5 p.m. Sundays.
Veca, who spent 300 hours over a five-week period maneuvering his way around every inch of the gallery in a boom lift that extended him 35 feet into the air, is known for his impressive, floor-to-ceiling installations characterized by pop-surrealist, cartoon-like images.
UB's "El Gloominator" is no exception.
Upon entering the room, onlookers are confronted with an asteroidal figure frozen in space a few feet above the gallery floor. A series of red, orange and yellow hues shadow each other in rainbow order to provide a horizon-like backdrop for the dripping, liquefied object. The walls that surround the site of impact are painted with vast "grottos," as Veca calls them -- deep, cave-like areas adding a "gloomy," mysterious spirit to the piece captured by its name.
UB Art Gallery Director Al Harris discovered Veca this past spring at a Hallwalls show and commissioned him to take on the Lightwell Gallery. The artist, after observing the verticality of the gallery space, decided to create a piece that would emphasize gravity as a vertical force.
The speeding image about to crash into the gallery floor achieves the desired effect and comes to life with vivid areas of color and a textural look that illustrates Veca's tendency to play with the elements of depth and repetition.
In addition to his inspiration from cartoons, Veca noted that he has been influenced by the work of abstract expressionist Philip Guston and Los Angeles pop-artist Edward Ruscha.
Other works by Veca include a repetitive rendition of the cartoon character Popeye's disembodied forearm and fist, on display earlier this year in The Drawing Center in New York, as well as murals in New York City's Kravets/Wehby and PS 122 galleries.
A graduate of the Otis Art Institute of Parsons School of Design in Los Angeles, Veca has participated in many national and international group exhibitions. He recently received a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship and has been commissioned to do a mural for the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art that he will begin next month.