Press release for "Meticulosity"

              Press Contact: Kathy MacPherson
kmacpherson@otis.edu / (310) 665.6909
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LOS ANGELES – February, 2012 – Otis College of Art and
Design is pleased to present the exhibition Meticulosity to be
held April 28 – July 7, 2012 at Ben Maltz Gallery.
Co-curators: Meg Linton and John David O’Brien; poets selected by Paul Vangelisti, poet and Chair of
OTIS Graduate Writing.
Meticulosity features the work of 11 Southern California based artists and three poets who each work
in various genres ranging from painting to installation to ceramic and digital formats. Artists in the
exhibition: Tanya Batura, Hilary Brace, Eileen Cowin, Linda Hudson, Gegam Kacherian,
Sandeep Mukherjee, Ross Rudel, Linda Stark, Arthur Taussig, Elizabeth Turk, Samira Yamin.
Poets: Guy Bennett, Dennis Phillips, and Martha Ronk.
The title Meticulosity references both the technical / formal approach of the artists as well as the
spiritual focus of their creative efforts, their tenacity and continuity. The premise for Meticulosity is
that these artworks are created in a meditative mode or through a trance-like process and that the
painstaking kind of exactitude determined by the execution of these works on different orders is
something these artists want the viewer to perceive along with the conceptual values. We connect that
visual meticulousness to a sense of the ineffable, or that which is beyond words, and to the meaning of
beauty.
Our interest is in bridging the way in which the conceptual and the visual seem to have diverged. The
thoughtfulness (a conceptual dimension) of the geometric and historical underpinnings in a Piero della
Francesca painting such as The Flagellation are not in any way contradicted by the meticulously
beautiful surfaces he has painted of the scenes of itself (a purely visual dimension). As curators, our
self appointed task was to avoid preclusions on either side of this divide. We are presenting
exceptionally thoughtful artwork where the visual acuity is as important as the originating idea to the
process of its creation and have selected a variety of genres to underscore the plurality of our point of
view for this project. This project is sponsored in part by the OTIS Board of Governors.
Events in conjunction with the exhibition, all free and open to the public:
April 28, 4-6pm: Opening reception, with live music by MUSE
June 9, 11am: Tour of exhibition with the curators and artists
June 16, 2pm: Poetry reading by Guy Bennett, Martha Ronk, and Dennis Philips
Workshops
Offered through Otis Continuing Education; for more info and how to register, contact: 310.665.6850,
otisce@otis.edu, www.otis.edu/ce
Introduction to Woodcarving with Ross Rudel – Saturdays, June 2 - August 4, 2-6pm
Paper-Cutting with Samira Yamin – Sunday, June 3, 10am-1pm
Writing for Artists with Samira Yamin – Saturdays, June 2 - August 4, 10am-1pm