Caves and Nests Catalog

Caves and Nests

An exploration of personal spaces as seen by Jasper White and Steve Ellis

Exhibition: September 14 - October 12, 2012

gallery nine5 is pleased to present “Caves and Nests,” a collection of new works by Jasper White and Steve Ellis. This will be the first time that the artists are presented together in a single exhibition.

The show is comprised of two distinct but related bodies of work, which explore the spaces that individuals inhabit which serve as a refuge from the rest of the world. Visitors will see Jasper White’s extended “Shed” series in the front room of the gallery, which will be accompanied by a book of the same title to be published in 2013. The back room of the gallery will display two companion pieces by Steve Ellis.

While traveling in Western Victoria, Australia, White discovered an unusual oasis. Rather than gathering at a bar, the local men congregate in their own sheds, which act as a welcome respite after a long workday. It is here, drenched in machismo and memorabilia, that the men can meet with their friends in comfort and solidarity. Though, as White quickly discovered, no two sheds are alike. Through White’s photographs these spaces are revealed to be an allegorical picture of human individuality. White captures the intimate spaces with Lambda prints, a process unparalleled in color saturation. The sheds are rendered in straggering vividness and clarity. Through the technical mastery of the photographs, the sheds take on a life outside of their inhabitants. The beauty of these spaces, and the infinite variations found within them, are the focal point. As can be seen in his other series, White is a master of concentrated sociological studies of common rooms and objects.

In the tradition of artists choosing their workspaces as muse, Steve Ellis depicts his home in upstate New York and studio in Manhattan through the nesting birds who share these environments with him, and the surrounding landscapes that he can view through the windows. The painting Barnstorming Swallow depicts a bird Ellis frequently sees making a home and flying around the barn studio. The swallow carries materials to build a nest: a blade of grass, dried wheat and a piece of a Hershey’s Kiss wrapper (an allusion to a past series by Ellis). The artist and his wife are reflected in the bird’s eyes underscoring the highly personal nature of this piece. Throughout the landscape we see evidence of the artist’s life in the country as well as hints to the politically charged messages that are usually expected from his work. City Pigeon shows a determined bird preparing a nest while coping with maladies picked up from making a home in the city. He flies over downtown in unpredictable weather with “Land of the fee, home of the slave” in his beak, echoing the picket signs of recent protesting occupiers.

In the past, Ellis has depicted American pop culture iconography often focusing on a single image with near fetishistic focus to stress various issues of contemporary consumerism. With the two stunning pieces in the “Caves and Nests” exhibition, we see Ellis using his technical virtuosity to look internally and explore his own relationship with his surroundings.

Steve Ellis

Barnstorming Swallow

Oil on canvas 66 x 114 in | 168 x 290 cm

City Pigeon (E Pluribus Unum Loisada) Oil on canvas 51.5 x 131 in | 131 x 333 cm

Jasper White

Chris’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

John’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Ian’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Morry’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Shawn’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Stig’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Tommy’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Tromppy’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Flaherty’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Gerry’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Merv’s Shed Lambda print on archival paper 40 x 50 in | 101.6 x 127 cm Limited edition of 6 + 3 Artist Proofs

Steve Ellis in his studio

Details of Barnstorming Swallow and City Pigeon

Jasper White shooting the Shed Series in Australia

24 spring st. new york, ny, 10012 | 212.965.9995 | info@gallerynine5.com