Nancy Kay Turner and Michael Falzone are expertly paired in two solo shows now at Roswell Space through April 14th. Sigma features work that touches on memory and the mysterious in an exhibit that utilizes found objects and memorabilia as well as fascinating artistic form.
Turner fully inhabits a world that touches on the illusions of memory – and how time changes all. There’s a current of magical realism in her work as well. Here working primarily earth tones, the artist offers framed mixed media works that include the abandoned antique photographs of strangers with a variety of other media, including gold leaf, collage materials, feathers, fabric, bits of wallpaper, even a pair of antique eyeglasses and a sheet of music.
One image features Teddy Roosevelt, and a message of despair scrawled in years long past.
Viewers are drawn to the mystery and the recognizable as well as the strange; in her work we are all one generation – or ten – away from being reappropriated as the grand ghosts of imagination.
A massive series of Turner’s scrolls descends from one wall as the viewer enters the gallery. Created from ink and coffee dyed rice paper on embossed wallpaper with mixed media, the 89″ by 63″ triptych “Memory Palace Totemic Scroll” descends from a thin bamboo rod and graces us with a sense of quiet remembrance that is both solemn and sweet. It is a glimpse through the curtains of time and a look at the world beyond it.
Falzone’s metal and wood sculptures are primarily long and thin, evocative sentinels standing at the portal, as it were. “Cat Man & Bird” embodies all three forms of being, with wit and understanding. He, too, touches on magical realism and remembrance.
“Woman in Red,” with eyebrows raised on a lustrous metal face, offers a quizzical guidance.
“Cat Man and Snake” presents a vivid reptile and elements reminiscent of Native American figures that are both welcoming and tributory.
Whether freestanding floor pieces or geared to a tabletop pedestal, each piece is a uniquely engrossing sculpture that compel with their narrative quality. Falzone also offers several wood on panel wall works, as well.
Both Falzone and Turner draw the eye and engage the spirit, evoking other places than this, realms both fantastical and just out of reach, possessing a fierce attraction that can only be called the magic of original art and its complex juncture with the storytelling of dreams.
Curated by gallerist Jonna Lee, Sigma will host a closing on April 14 from 2-4 p.m. and is open any time by appointment.
- Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis
