N55298685749_1666671_25913
Unless you're a raging Star Wars fan, you will not make the connection between the title of this show and a certain paperback novel that was released shortly after George Lucas' film. But that's okay.
"Splinter of of the Mind's Eye," which opens June 5 at Philip Slein Gallery, embraces a genre that many St. Louisans may not be familiar with: "Sci-Fi Ab-Ex," or Science Fiction/Abstract Expressionism. (Even though the term hasn't been bandied about here like it has on the coasts, you could put local guy Brandon Anschultz in that category; last fall, when I visited his studio he explained to me that his painting "Dark, No Ship," was based loosely on the idea of the Death Star.)
The show's curated by writer and critic Joseph Wolin, and includes a roster of young painters who took the influence of Star Wars (and Jackson Pollack) for granted, including Marc Handelman, Daniel Hesidence, Erik Oost, Emilio Perez (pictured above), Halsey Rodman, Gordon Terry, Britton Tolliver, Jonathan VanDyke and Oliver Warden. The really interesting thing to me here is how the movement has a sort of crescent-shaped embrace of history: World War II-era painters and 70s sci-fi. Maybe it's the spate of 1960s-themed charity balls that seem to have popped up everywhere lately, but I could use a break from the summer of love and all of that nonsense for a while. Give me Luke Skywalker and Franz Kilne, and throw in a little Patti Smith, too.
Speaking of punk rock, there's more good news: the gallery will also showing some selected works from the awesome Gary Panter alongside "Splinter." --Stefene Russell
