D-L Alvarez
The Road to Hell Less Traveled
April 16- May 18, 2002
Opening Reception: Thursday, April 18, 6-8pm
Derek Eller Gallery is pleased to present new work by D-L Alvarez.
In The Road to Hell Less Traveled, D-L Alvarez continues to explore nature from a decidedly urban perspective, with a combination of awe and fear. The central model for this show is the typical slasher film in which a bunch of city teens go to a party in the outback and some kook in a mask makes mulch of them. The blood has been washed away, but everything else is there. Alvarez focuses on the notion that the woods have eyes, for one...but also, that gray edge that comes before fear sets in, when the kids first realize they’re lost and see it as something sort of sexy and empowering.
His new drawings impose an order on these chaotic images through the simple use of hand drawn grids. They have a pixelated quality and glimmer like gun metal graphite. Also included in the exhibition are images of an Eminem fan, deformed birds, exploding words and a tree hugging skinhead. One drawing which appears to explode is further manipulated in a super 8 film transferred to video, and then mirrored to infinity. The extreme pixelated close-ups of the graphite covered paper look like something between smoke and the snow that once filled the screens of old black and white televisions at sign-off. On the gallery walls and floor, Alvarez has created a pixelated image of splattered blood rendered in shimmering duct tape.
The show’s secondary theme is a nod to the link between horror film imagery and heavy metal. The work in the show has an affinity to hardcore music structure: the order imposed on chaos, the chaos that struggles out of order. In short, it’s a clean exhibition about messy situations.
Alvarez is an American artist who lives and works in Germany. This will be his third solo show with the gallery. His work has been exhibited widely throughout the United States and Europe.
There will be a reading of original prose by the artist on Saturday, April 20, at 5:30 pm.
Derek Eller Gallery is located at 526 West 25th Street, 2nd floor. Hours are Tuesday - Saturday from 11am - 6pm. For further information or visuals, please contact the gallery at 212.206.6411 or derekeller@aol.com.