Originally Published in Musée magazine.
Angés B On Thursday August 1st 2013
“Flowers and Candy a group exhibition curated by Apology”
About 60 or so people braved the rain this Thursday to come to see the opening of “Flowers and Candy; a group exhibition curated by Apology”.
Apology is a fairly new quarterly magazine (it’s on it’s second issue) edited and art directed by Jessie Pearson, most well known for his work with VICE, but Apology has more in common with a hip Granta, than Pearson’s previous post.
The show was at Angés B; vivid unnatural colors of candy and bright blooms of flowers dominated the walls, while the regular supply of clothing took up the back of the space; at times it was hard to step a few feet back to admire the larger pieces without knocking into a rack of blouses.
That accepted, the work was interesting. The exhibition was Flowers and Candy, self described by Apology as “classical gestures of remorse”, but could equally be classical gestures of courtship. The theme was a juxtaposition of sexuality and innocence, childlike and mature, kitsch and candy, sex and gluttony.
Flowers served both as the classic sex symbol; typified by Jerry Hsu’s Rose which literally dripped with sexuality; and as objects for still life in works like Angés b’s Untitled (dandelion).
Jerry Hsu ‘Rose”
While candy was represented with Tara Sinn’s Candy Spooge and the blow up of Apology Cover 2 was a sensory overload; popping with a rainbow of artificial colors, spirals of liquorice and globes of gum, that bring back childhood fantasies of bulging halloween sacks, or dollars spent recklessly at the corner store; but now, viewed en massé, that innocence gone, gives a slight sense of nausea.
Laurie Simmons’ Love Doll/Day 34 (Blue Geisha, Dressing Room) took the floral theme to it’s most minimal, and highlighted exclusive eroticism using a simple feature of a blue flower with a porcelain geisha.
The only piece that was more floral pattern that floral portrait was a printed couch circa 1963, which seemed to tie more into the aesthetic of the clothing than the work.
Highlights of the of the show included Sandy Kim’s portrait of Mykki Blanco – looking fierce in in front of pink, wearing a spiked collar with lollypop in hand. The more esoteric British Girl in field by Richard Kern was sexual without being erotic, invoking impressionism through a fuzz box, the subject matter was mostly flowers; closely followed by legs.
The crowd that filled the store was young and hip, and gleefully ate up the candied dots and bubble yum just as quickly as they drank the Tecate and sipped fennel cocktails.
The show will leave you sticky sweet, and in need of a cold shower.
John Hutt 