An Exhibition of New Work
In Blackbird Sings at Twilight, Matt Kinney explores a variety of materials, often combining found objects through a unique process of traditional wood working techniques, and contemporary painting and sculpting strategies. By juxtaposing large scale scraps of timber with cultural detritus ranging from archaic weaponry to industrial trash, Kinney builds a personal vocabulary that explores the material and metaphysical tension between religion, human perception, and our relationship with the natural landscape.
For inspiration Kinney draws from his observations on the state of our hybrid world. And in his current work Kinney engages a meditation on the outspoken Christian martyr, Saint Sebastian. It is said that in the 3rd century, the Roman emperor ordered Sebastian to be tied to a tree, surrounded by archers, and filled with arrows. According to the legend, Sebastian miraculously lived through the assault, and later publicly criticized the emperor for his cruelties. In several of Kinney’s works, the wood remnants and cast-offs become surrogates for Sebastian. They represent the resilient remains of organic matter, precisely pierced and manipulated with weapons of power and aggression.
Intersections, (see image far left) is an assemblage created with long, recycled floor joists repurposed for aesthetic and symbolic effect. The beams stand on end, held to the architecture of the ceiling and floor with ancient arrows, blocks of river trash cast in resin, and bags of industrial cement. These elements collectively appear to prop up the gallery ceiling, creating a metaphor for the current state: a world where the intersection of dwindling resources, industrial waste, and weaponry eclipse the reality looming over our heads. Blue Javelin and Red Javelin are composed of human-scale
tree trunks that have been twisted and shorn by natural forces, human intervention, and time. In alluring trompe l’oiel, the dense, wood has been penetrated by what appears to be a tour de force: modern, yet archaic symbols of power and war thrusting through the inanimate bodies of the earth’s longest standing inhabitants.
In the series, Frozen Carbon Chamber, a combination of materials and processes reveal a positive and negative energy exchange between the organic, natural forms and the superficial fissures and erosion of industrial byproduct. Each aluminum panel has been cast from torched Styrofoam. The resulting negative forms within the manufactured frames mysteriously connect to positive forms throughout the space: a found object that appears to be a clump of industrial entrails, the edges of roughly worked timbers, and hyper-realistic sculptures of animals and common tools that Kinney carves by hand with traditional wood-working techniques.
Blackbird Sings at Twilight is a meditation on the current existential crisis; a milieu where the natural order of things is over-shadowed by archaic systems of power and aggression. Kinney creates an arsenal of works bent on investigating relationnships between these two worlds. Through a process of observing, making, and abstract story-telling, Kinney’s work sounds a call on the edge of darkness to examine these artifacts and consider the trajectory of time’s arrow.
Special thanks to Hudson Beach Gallery for hosting the exhibition, to Joseph Ayers for writing the curatorial statement, and everyone who helped with the production and installation of the show.
Blue Javelins 12’x6’x2’ Wood-Cherry, Javelins 2017
Intersections 14’ x 10’ x 8’ Reclaimed floor joist, cast resin, arrows, context- steel girders, enamel paint, building 2017
As One 48” x 48” x 18 “ Found Foam and Tree Slice 2017
Frozen Carbon Chamber nine panels 18” x 19” x 1 1/2” each torched styrofoam cast in aluminum Found Object: Industrial waste, plastic 2017
River Otter 34 1/2” x 6 1/2” x 8 3/8” Bass Wood, Epoxy, Wood Glue 2017
Interface 16” x 14 x 21” CherryWo”od 2015
Frozen Carbon Chamber nine panels 18” x 19” x 1 1/2” each torched styrofoam cast in aluminum 2017
Barrel Stainless Steel, beer keg, foam, resin, paint 26” x 20” x 31” 2017
Axe 19 1/2” x 6” x 1 1/16” Wood, Gabon Ebony 2015
Hammer 15 7/8” x 6” x 1 3/8” Ebony Wood 2014
Matt was born in Georgetown, Massachusettes. He attended Pratt Institute and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. He began making work in the 90’s as a painter in Los Angeles, California, and later moved to Boston and New York City. He has worked at art foundries in their sand departments and in the construction industry. In 2003 he moved to the Hudson Valley, where he currently lives and works. For more information email mattkinneyny@gmail.com m a t t k i n n e y. n e t