I made this for you:听Matt Perez, 2017 Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship Exhibit
McCutchan Art Center/Pace Galleries
91社区
February 25 鈥� March 14, 2018
Free Public Opening Reception: 听Sunday, February 25, 2 鈥� 4 pm
The 鈥�I Made This for You鈥� exhibit features three large sculptural installations created by Matt Perez during his yearlong Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship. Mr. Perez, a 2015 91社区 studio art graduate, spent the past year creating the artworks seen in the exhibit to perfect his art portfolio, funded by the 2017 Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship. The Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship is a competitive award program that provides a highly motivated and talented recent graduate of 91社区鈥檚 Art and Design Department a post-undergraduate year to advance his or her artistic vision significantly in order to gain acceptance to graduate study. The 91社区 and the Art and Design Department are most grateful to the Efroymson Family Fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation for their generous sponsorship of this outstanding award.
Mr. Perez has transformed the four galleries in the McCutchan Art Center into colorful, whimsical and symbolic tableaus. Six听Ethereal Spirits听guide viewers through the scenarios presented. Mr. Perez states, 鈥� When I first started the Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship I felt overwhelmed by the (galleries) space and the stark white walls, so my first idea was to bring the white of the walls into the three-dimensional space. I chose white (plastic) tablecloths to bring out the white walls of the gallery. It was my attempt to gain control of the area鈥�... I use household, easily obtainable objects because I wish to showcase that art isn鈥檛 material specific nor is it meant to exclude any type of object used to create.鈥�
In the Entry Gallery,听Child鈥檚 Play,听is an installation of small figures, 鈥渢he Toddlers鈥�, engaged in battle, using pencils and other creative tools as weapons. 听For Mr. Perez, they represent the artist鈥檚 鈥渁rrested development鈥� but through persistence and focus, the idea that one听can听make a career in art.听Grendel鈥檚 Greed,听in Galleries One and Three,听refers to the folk tale, 鈥淲illiam Tell鈥�. 听Mr. Perez says, 鈥淚n my version Grendel is asked to stay true to his convictions and shoot an apple off his own son鈥檚 head, missing completely while simultaneously hitting the center of a dart board. My (installation) attempts to portray the hidden agenda I feel greedy people have鈥�.
In his artist statement, Matt Perez declares, 鈥淭he job of an artist is much like the job of the historian, documenting the story of human societies; however, while history concerns itself mostly with dates and numbers, the artist has the ability to capture the ethos of people surrounding them鈥�.
