jeremiah ariaz: frontier opens at la esquina december 4, 6-9pm

Frontier is a solo exhibition of recent work by Louisiana based artist Jeremiah Ariaz. It opens at UCP’s la Esquina, 1000 West 25th Street, with a reception on December 4, 2009, 6-9pm, and remains on view through January 7, 2010.

The exhibition features a new three projection video installation, Frontier, which was filmed in rural Kansas.  Shot by three cameras aligned side by side, the piece presents a panoramic view of open sky and prairie, amidst which the artist attempts to “run West” for a duration of 24 hours.  As one quickly realizes that the figure, dressed in blue jeans and cowboy hat, is making no progress but rather running in place, the work becomes both a quiet meditation on the land and a portrait of unfulfilled desire.  The adventure-seeking, possibility-laden American call of “go West young man” is here answered with futility and exhaustion, with the outcome of his action being a scar carved in the earth. The show also features Shadow Root, an installation of drawings, color photographs (presented as slide projections), and sculpture that  considers the Santa Fe trail, the people who travelled it, and the larger ideas that it represented.

Read full press release.