Ex Cathedra: Recent Work by Byron Black

“Chairs. Le Corbusier called them “machines for sitting on.” Beyond their ability to support us physically, they also help us to expand our understanding of the human form and the human condition. They are remarkable inventions of comfort and support. Chairs are our beasts of burden. They are a symbol of authority. They ease our fatigue at the end of a long day. They hold us when we are lonely. I have dreamt about chairs.”

-Byron Black

Black uses dynamic compositional structures and a range of materials and styles in this collection of works. Found object constructions and digital drawings aren’t the most compatible mediums stylistically, but each provides the right vehicle for an exploration of chairs and their symbolic significance.

In the drawings and paintings in this exhibition, Black explores power dynamics as shown through the relationship between chairs and their human counterparts. To sit, in many instances, is a privilege. A sign of influence, status, wisdom, justice, or even corruption. When we sit, how we sit, and where we sit is significant. An armchair can simply be a restful place for contemplation, or a throne of action and intrigue. The “seat of power” is at the heart of our political and religious institutions and, as such, is a source of conflict and the reward for victory. Chairs can suggest stability and balance, but what about one that is not firmly grounded? Or flipped upside down and its occupant upended? Unoccupied chairs also have significance too. An empty school desk suggests absence and presence simultaneously – the ghost of a figure, perpetually bound to a prescribed pose.

An opening reception for this exhibition will be held September 11 from 2 to 4 PM.  

Gallery Hours: Tues-Sat from noon to 5PM
Irving Arts Center’s galleries are open for viewing free of charge during regular gallery hours Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 PM.