Jump Cut
Fjord Gallery
June 19 - July 30, 2017
Opening reception: Friday June 19, 6-9
Secondary reception: Thursday July 13, 2017 6-9
Threshold
Threshold
Vox Populi Gallery
May 5 - June 25, 2017
Opening reception: Friday May 5, 6-9
Secondary reception: Friday June 8, 6-9
Artist's talk moderated by members of Ulises: Sunday June 25, 3-5
"Art is the concrete representation of our most subtle feelings" -- Agnes Martin
Threshold presents a series of large scale drawings examining the relationship between architectural exterior and psychological interior.
Murray’s recent work begins with two assumptions. One: that designed form carries both base human imagery and accumulated historical meaning (usually the evidence of outdated power structures) And two: the sheer ubiquity and endless remixing of these forms has the effect of neutralizing this embedded meaning at the level of everyday experience. The result is an abundance of form that seems relatable and teases our intellectual curiosity while remaining largely mysterious; a blank slate that is actually anything but.
These unique conditions of the built environment allow for a complementary relationship with our psychological interior, where the experience of exterior forms often serves as a scaffold or landing place for our inner thoughts.
Using designed forms as raw material for a still life subject, Murray creates drawings which are at once interior and exterior, still life and portrait, in an attempt to concretize and share this nuance of lived experience.
Of That Time, Of that Place at Pentimenti Gallery
I'm honored to be showing this month at a gallery I have always admired with a fantastic group of artists: Ted Larsen, Andrea Wolfensberger and Robert Younger. The exhibition at Pentimenti Gallery in Old City (145 N. 2nd St) is open now through February 18, with a reception on Friday February 3 from 6-8.
Space to Fill
Space to Fill
November 6-29, 2015
Vox Populi Gallery
Opening reception: Friday Nov 6, 6-10
Artist’s talk moderated by Alex Klein: Sunday Nov 22, 3-6
“Non-stop re-enactment not only legitimises the conditions and ideologies that it embodies: it is a way of making real-- of making architecture’s innate syntheticness seem natural.” --Sam Jacob, from Make It Real: Architecture as Enactment, 2012
Space to Fill represents a search for meaning within the built environment, and deploys the intense focus of representational drawing in an attempt to understand our most common and iterative architectural habits; that which represents our most basic instincts as we naturalize our surroundings. Diluted forms, holding both the whisper of their origin and new meanings conferred by material and context--seemingly too ubiquitous to merit much attention--are here given an undue amount.
The limits of such understanding are also explored, using the medium of drawing again to "resolve the unresolvable," exposing the lack of information and loss of knowledge which is an inevitable condition of our landscape and lived experience. In fact, this lack of knowledge -- translating to a sense of mystery and wonder -- can be a casualty of a practice based on relentless looking, and so is reclaimed here.
Failing to find meaning, meaning is conferred. Based on the certainty of the integral relationship of architecture and the human body, the work here attempts to enforce a sense of empathy, wonder, humor and affection that is representative of our personal relationships to the things we construct.
Woodmere Annual Juried Exhibition
Thrilled to be included in this annual snapshot of the Philadelphia art scene, juried by the ridiculously accomplished Dufala brothers. Click the image for more information on the other artists, gallery talk, and upcoming catalogue.
Buy Some Damn Art
Willya?
www.buysomedamnart.com
Dream House reviewed in Title Magazine
Thank you Sabina Tichindeleanu for the thoughtful and beautifully written review of a show close to my heart.
Title Magazine
Dream House
DREAM HOUSE brings to limited realization a long abandoned architectural dream, surfacing an alternate timeline for a family since fractured.
In a way, a gift to the architect.
In another way, his soul laid bare.
In fact, my soul laid bare.
Coming to Vox Populi October 3!
Drawn Together in Philadelphia
a nice little write up of Drawing Now Philadelphia on the Knight Arts website by Chip Schwartz
Drawing Now Philadelphia
I'm thrilled to be exhibiting alongside some of Philly's best draftspeople in the upcoming Drawing Now Philadelphia, curated by Sabina Tichindeleanu. From the press release:
"...proud to present DRAWING NOW PHILADELPHIA, highlighting leading local artists who exemplify the versatility of drawing by stretching the traditional boundaries of the genre. DRAWING NOW PHILADELPHIA will feature 14 Philadelphia-based artists whose work is at the forefront of the medium: Ruth Scott Blackson, Astrid Bowlby, Amze Emmons, Alexis Granwell, Daniel Heyman, Sharka Hyland, Colin Keefe, Erin Murray, Michelle Oosterbaan, Serena Perrone, Mia Rosenthal, Hiro Sakaguchi, Caroline Santa, and Samantha Simpson. By exhibiting a well-rounded variety of artistic practices, concepts and visions related to drawing, DRAWING NOW PHILADELPHIA offers a glimpse into the latest directions and developments in drawing and works on paper."
ArtSpace Liberti, 2424 E. York St.
September 5 through October 26, 2014
Opening: September 5, 2014, 6:30pm
Order of Operations: a two person exhibition at Breeze Block Gallery, Portland OR
I am excited to announce a two-person show with the fantastic Tristram Lansdowne, opening February 6th at Breeze Block Gallery in Portland, OR. More details soon.
Volume Exhibit
Please check out my work at Volume Exhibit on view this month. They are a great resource for discovering new artists online (and sometimes even IRL!)
Source: volume-exhibit.com
(In)finite Gardens at Delicious Spectacle
Opening this Friday November 8 from 7-10. A fantastic looking group show at Delicious Spectacle, a unique house gallery in DC. From the press release:
“The work of these five artists relates to and addresses ideas of habitat, environment, the natural, notions of the sublime, and home. The concept of a garden serves as a helpful frame for viewing the diverse works collected in this show. Generally speaking, a garden is a demarcated space that is tended to and cared for, which also includes elements of the natural. An odd zone that is both artificial and natural. In this way, the work in this show can be said to look at the world, through the lens of a garden. That is say, the world is no longer considered infinite, but evenly proportioned and tended to by differing populations and forces. The artists’ lenses vary, some offer more optimistic visions of the future, others less so. [In]finite Gardens serves to raise questions about our current relationship and understanding to one of our most shared experiences and resources, the land.”
Fort Thunder Attaks! and CITYWIDE exhibitions
One of the most exciting things to happen to the Philly art scene is coming up this November: CITYWIDE. Over twenty artist collectives will participate in an exchange of exhibitions, ideas and practices. The multi-venue exhibit will be located in different neighborhoods throughout the city.
My own artist collective, Vox Populi, is trading spaces with Space 1026 for the month, where we've offered to recreate one of their seminal shows, Fort Thunder Attaks! The now legendary Fort Thunder was a warehouse and art collective based in Providence RI in the late 90s known for underground noise music, art and communal living, hosting countless shows, wrestling matches, halloween mazes and the like.
Our own recreation of the 1026 exhibit will include wrestling, costumes, forts, and lots of noise (and much more!) in homage to Fort Thunder and the collective spirit. Check out our inspirational tumblr for a taste, and definitely join us on Friday November 8 from 6-11 for the main (noisy, sweaty, costumed) event. The show will be on view from Nov 1-30.
Erin Murray/Recent Work at the Kelly Writer's House, Brodsky Gallery
Please join me Tuesday Sept 24 (6-8) for an artist's talk and reception kicking off my solo show in the unique architectural setting of the Kelly Writer's House at the University of Pennsylvania. There will be a limited edition silkscreen and letterpress print commemorating the show available free for the taking!
Made In Philly and Philadelphia Open Studio Tours
In conjunction with the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours, you can catch my work at the Berks El Station, on the Market-Frankford Line, during the months of September and October. The Made in Philly project aims to show work in close proximity to where it was made. In my case, just seven blocks away!
Please check out my studio during the tour on October 5-6 from 12-6 pm. Bonus: it's the only studio on the tour behind a kickass record store!
1524 Frankford Ave, first floor rear
Buddy System Invitational at Breeze Block Gallery
Looking forward to this group show in Portland in September, where my work will be paired up with the fantastic Amze Emmons!
I-REF Magazine
I don't know German, but the delightfully off Google Translate version of the text here seems nice. Thanks for the feature!
Work Featured on Beautiful/Decay
My work was recently featured on the popular art and design blog Beautiful/Decay with a thoughtful intro from Larissa Erin Greer. Thanks!
