Group Show:

Existence is Elsewhere: Surrealism and the 21st Century. Michael Berryhill, Virginia Yount, and Cecelia Phillips Else Madsen Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of work by Michael Berryhill, Virginia Yount and Cecelia Phillips organized by Stacey Farrar and William Hundley. The exhibition will open Friday, March 9th with a reception for the artists from 6-9pm. Existence is Elsewhere brings together three painters dealing with an aspect of reality such as landscape or narrative with surrealist tendencies establishes a tangent of our perceived reality. The work thrusts itself against rational and “civilized” standards by embracing not only the absurd and irrational but also aiming a sensitive eye on scenes and landscapes from our everyday experience. Surrealism is one of the most influential philosophical and artistic movements of the last century. A direct revolt of the hypocrisy of those who took refuge in the beauty of classical artwork in the midst of the futile barbarisms that was occurring in the First World War. Dada and Surrealism's direct iconoclasm was born out of rejection of the status and restrictive authority of the early 1900's. With more than 80 years of evolution between the birth of this movement and our present situation, surrealism is as pertinent now as it was in 1924. In the vein of Yves Tanguy and more recently Neo Rauch these painters explore the idea of transcending reality by combining facets of imaginary and perceived realities in an attempt to change modern consciousness. Michael Berryhill, Virginia Yount and Cecelia Phillips pursue these realities and tangents to encourage the viewer ascend to other states of existence, if only for a brief moment.