IT’S ALL IN THE MIND

In 1917 Marcel Duchamp took a urinal, turned the object on its side and placed it on a pedestal and named the piece, “Fountain.”  The piece was one of a group of objects that Duchamp called “readymades”— works that challenged traditional notions of art making and art exhibitions as he argued that a work of art should primarily be about the artist’s idea.  In the local scene, Roberto Chabet’s (1937- 2013) lifetime work also challenged the different perceptions of art and addressed the rigid notions of what “art” is.

Today, we find Lindsey James Alvarez Lee, “Lindslee” (b. 1979) continuing this conceptual dialogue in his current exhibition “It’s All in Mind” on view at the Galleria Duemila from August 3 to 31.  In this show, the artist continues to probe and challenge, like his predecessors, the “conventional notions of art”—this time by objectifying the physical attributes of the painting itself. “Is it always in the minds of people that painting is Art,” he says, “but what if I destroy, tear, roll or reverse the painting?  Is it still art?”

Lindslee is an artist who often finds himself questioning the norms and traditions of art such as in his 2008 show, “Figuring Abstraction” where he confronted the concept behind abstract art.  In this show, his works take on the meaning of Art as object and how preconceived ideas about art and its makers can influence perception.  The show also displays samples of the artist’s forays into taxidermy as he utilizes the ”stuffed animals” as focal elements for his mixed media works.

Lindslee holds a degree in Bachelor of Fine Arts Major in Painting, University of Santo Tomas and advanced training in mixed media, drawing, painting, color and composition at The Art Students League of New York, New York, USA.  He has had eight solo exhibitions both here and abroad, and has participated in numerous group shows since 1999.  His works have also gained recognition here and in New York.

by Rachel Mayo