Photographed by: Adrian Wilson

An exhibition curated by Heskin Projects:
Elizabeth Heskin, Tracey Ravdin Perlmutter, and Patricia Spergel

“Saturated” is a word with many meanings. In the general, non-visual sense, it can be defined as “filled to capacity; having absorbed all that can be taken up; unable to hold or contain more.” But in the visual arts, particularly photography, saturation refers to the intensity of a color. The higher the saturation, the more vivid the image is, the lower the saturation of a color, the closer it is to gray.  In today’s world, one can feel inundated and saturated by too much news, too much noise, too much stimulation.  The five artists in this exhibition play with density of forms, colors and materials- these works are the antithesis of minimal; one could say that many of these works lean towards “horror vacui”, a Latin phrase describing a fear of, or aversion to, empty space. The complexity and richness on display in these paintings creates a positive and vivid pulsing awareness—the visual equivalent of a shot of caffeine or adrenaline to engage the mind and the soul.

SATURATION will be on view at 1GAP Gallery through 1/6/25.  The gallery is located at 1 Grand Army Plaza, across the street from the Brooklyn Library, a few short blocks from the Brooklyn Art Museum, and easily accessible by subway.

Please make an appointment to view the exhibition. For further information, please email: Eheskin@gmail.com.

About the Artists:

Loren Munk (b. 1951, Salt Lake City, Utah) spent his youth in Idaho and after a stint abroad in the US Army, he established a studio in NYC in 1979.  In the mid-1990s, he created the persona of “James Kalm”, a bike-riding videographer who documents popular art openings and exhibitions. This constant and careful looking has clearly informed Munk’s paintings, which are fascinating and intricate maps and charts of art world references. These densely saturated, complex works sparked the idea for this show. Munk has the uncanny ability to archive facts and figures about art historical icons and movements yet make them into compelling and exciting paintings-- avoiding any whiff of being gimmicky.  He draws the viewer in with his high-keyed color choices and active brushwork and then asks us to slow down and meander the entire expanse of the canvas—a truly rewarding experience.

Julie Peppito (b.1970, Tulsa, OK) received an MFA from Alfred University in Alfred, NY and a BFA from The Cooper Union in New York, NY.  She lives and works in Brooklyn. In Peppito’s own words:  “My work is a composite of candy wrapper glitz and nature’s strange beauty. In this conflicted space, I create sewn, painted and sculpted narratives that show connections between people and the planet we share.” She uses found and repurposed materials in her swirling, energetic works – anything from rubber cords, wires, pieces of old toys, costume jewelry, thread, yarn. These elements are combined with drawn and painted passages to create intricately detailed constructions.  What is unique to Peppito’s paintings, sculptures, tapestries and installations is their intensity of feeling.  Her humor and her humanity shine through in these densely layered elegiac images.

Giordanne Salley (b. 1986, Ohio) received an MFA from Boston University and a BFA from Anderson University and lives and works in Brooklyn. Salley’s paintings are meditations on the complexity of looking closely at the world around us and how things overlap and touch.  At a quick glance you might see undulating brushstrokes depicting ripples of water.  But look more closely and you will see ducks and feet and hair and other body parts emerging from and receding into the water. Salley has referred to her paintings as exploring the intersection of love and nature, “These paintings are about being in love and how that feels when you think about it later.”

Jack Arthur Wood (b. 1990 Cincinnati, OH) received an MFA from Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, a BA from Guilford College.  He also studied at Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture and now lives and works in Queens, NY.  Wood’s mixed media constructions pulsate with a frenetic but singularly urban energy.   There is an architectural scaffolding underpinning many of his paintings which gives him a base upon which to build prismatic, expansive and radiating images.  Wood uses strips of painted, stained and patterned fabrics as well as cut up canvases and lots of glue to assemble complex, dense and saturated images of cities at night, as well as more intimate, mysterious domestic interiors.

Christina Zimpel  (b. 1961, Perth, Western Australia)  studied graphic design at Curtin University in Australia and then worked as an art director for Australian and American Vogue for several years. She now resides in NYC and has a studio in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.  Zimpel’s practice draws from past and present observations-- her own garden, her grandmother’s garden growing up, her mother's Hungarian background, her background in fashion and design and, of course, the daily parade of life on display in NYC.  Her vividly saturated palette leans towards broad, flat areas of fluorescent color, clearly inspired by Matisse and Fauvists, but her take on the female form especially is very 21st century and uniquely her own.