Michael Hermesh
Solo Exhibition: Who Are We? - August 13 to August 31, 2020
WHO ARE WE?
When I look at the pieces I have collected for this show; it strikes me as a bestiary of human folly.
My intention is not to portray pessimism as an esthetic. The narratives we all live by are human narratives, imperfect and ultimately quite mad. These stories are what we use to create life.
While we assume we have a purpose and make decisions with the council of Gods or the logic of science, that we have a special insight due to our particular nobility, we are flawed. Our functional narratives come from agreements, habits, misunderstandings and fears as well as rational insight. I am not saying we are all confused madmen; I am saying we are human to a fault.
These images are not icons of agreed upon. They are narratives that find their strength in uncertainty.
“It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question.” Eugene Lonesco
More artist statements about particular works at bottom of this page below the images.
Michael Hermesh mixed media drawings in this show. They measure 11 x 8.5 inches (27.5cm x 21.25cm) 16 are currently framed: $600 CAD in black frame (double acid free matting, acid free backing, 99% UV glass). Unframed $425 for 1, or 3 @ $1000 CAD ($1500 for 3 framed). The drawings can be sold unframed (even if one you love is currently framed.) Note: we can ship framed artwork but will remove the glass for shipping safety. If one of the drawings intrigues you, please email us for larger gallery images or a gallery shot of the piece.
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All prices are unframed unless otherwise noted. In the event of a price discrepancy between online and in-store pricing, in-store pricing is considered correct.
Artist Statements About Select Works in this Show
“Art is successful to the degree that an emotional or spiritual dialogue has taken place with the viewer engaged in such a way as to engender participation in the work" --Michael Hermesh
Artist Statement on The Inherent Danger of Garndening II" (WIP)
The "garden" is an example of a painting from which I have learned:
a) I realized I was painting the "Garden of Eden.b) I realized that the Garden of Eden was the moment that hunter-gatherer stopped being the only paradigm and that the skills required to be a hunter-gatherer were all of a sudden sharing the stage with farming. Hence the metaphorical expulsion from the "Garden of Eden." The woman, far from her nakedness being a sign of weakness, is a sign of strength, as the guiles she uses are her own. The man in the suit represents the strength of conformity and economic reality. The woman's power is her naked wildness, and the man's strength is in the briefcase.
In other words, the woman is a metaphor for the "hunter-gatherer," and the man is a metaphor for the skills required once evicted from the garden.
Artist Statement on Persistence of Vision
Our interaction with the real world depends more on our own creation of what is there than what can be measured externally. The glue that ultimately holds the world together is narrative. The inner objects we create are what is real. If the physical object were to disappear, the one that would remain is the true one.
Artis Statement on The Descent Beckons as the Ascent BeckonedWe are at a pinnacle, and the effect we can have on the world is truly staggering. We are a force, not to be ignored. We are a force that cannot be escaped from, whether we are players or bystanders. The greater stories that will play themselves out are beyond our control.
View the regular collection of works by Michael Hermesh
About the Artist
Born 1955 in Spiritwood Saskatchewan, Michael Hermesh studied art at Okanagan University College and the Vancouver School of Art (Emily Carr). He also has extensive experience in furniture design and ornamental carving. From his residence and self-constructed studio, he continues to indulge his passion for sculpting, as well as hold drawing workshops and sculpture courses. His primary interest has always been figurative sculpture but 2019 and 2020 have brought into his studio and onto his easel an outpouring of original acrylic on panel paintings, a natural progression from his thought-provoking mixed media figurative drawings.
Michael's sculptures, paintings and drawings are represented in international collections throughout Canada, the USA, and Europe.
Some thoughts from Michael:
My art is shaped by how I view the world. I do not believe that there is a state of grace in life. Life is life – it is dynamic, and it is always a struggle. Integrity, awareness, and dignity remain constants. These are elements in life that are unchanging and real that can be spent or thrown away. For me, this is the mystic and beauty of life and the underlying subject matter of all my work.
My sculpture is about what makes us human and about what give us spiritual dignity and strength. My pieces always portray a dynamic aspect of living (force and counter force). I do this through composition, the effort, the restraint and through the battle of spirit with the constraints of situation.
My feeling about art is that in any given moment the world is filled with images and objects that entertain, dazzle and stroke the senses but that there is precious little truth in our day-to-day lives. What I am drawn to is truth, that truth is deeper than the physical shell that houses it, that truth is a subjective vision.
I feel very strongly that all art has narrative content in the sense that for anything to exist there is tension and an outcome. The art will also always have mystic content in so far that our relationship with a greater reality is part of what makes us human.
Art is successful to the degree that an emotional or spiritual dialogue has taken place with the viewer engaged in such a way as to engender participation in the work.
Sculpture is capturing the transition from one state to another; thematically through movement and tension, in composition, and in the idea that spirit can be transmuted to flesh or day."
Follow this link to see sculptures and more of Michael's available paintings and drawings.
Fans of Michael Hermesh's work will enjoy reading this article on Michael and his work in the 2016 Summer Edition of Arabella Magazine: http://www.arabelladesign.com/magazine_Summer2016/Michael_Hermesh/Michael_Hermesh.html.