Mount Airy Contemporary Artists Space | Home: Reflections and Projections

Mount Airy Contemporary Artists Space is currently presenting

Home: Reflections and Projections

an exhibition of the works of Christina Day and Brenna K. Murphy

let me start off by saying a couple of things.

1. i know colin and andrea, the co-directors of macas.

2. i like them. they are my friends.

3. i've never actually written a review before.

so here goes.

the hair.

brenna murphy's work is stunning. many of you who know me would agree that i can be a little off, a little crazy and a little over the top when i work on my own projects. i might be crazy, but brenna is nuts. she's creating beautifully articulate artwork with her hair. now it would be one thing if she was sewing it with a needle and stitching these works in a traditional way. but, she's not. she's poking the paper with a straight pin and then threading each hair through the aforementioned hole. the result is a an amazingly realistic "drawing" of everyday items. egg beaters, other kitchen appliances, living rooms. bed rooms. really well conceived bedrooms. i want to live in one of her bedrooms.

this is not actually taken in the gallery, but it is similar to what's in the gallery.

art attack.

chrissy day's work is interesting. she makes these "refractions" that are fabulous. she's altering found mirrors, specifically at the gallery are old medicine cabinets, and creating a new way to react to them. additionally, she has some sculptural video pieces in the gallery that i couldn't quite get into because i was a little too short to comfortably interact with. and finally, there was the architectural sculpture that bit me. hard. i was bee-lining across the crowded room to get what i thought was a pen (it ended up being a corkscrew, but that's a conversation for my eye doctor) and ran into this, this... staircase. a small portion of a staircase that was kind of interestingly sticking out of the floor and simultaneously connected to the wall. it made such a loud noise that the room went quite and someone yelled "art attack". it was funny. kind of. and i still have a giant bruise two weeks later.

on of chrissy day's refractions

perpetrator: "wall to wall".

victim's injury 2 weeks after incident.

macas

i love love love that macas held this opening not on a first friday. first friday is always so hard for me because of my commitment to highwire gallery and where ever else i might be showing...so while ive been to many of their show's over the year, this was the first time i was able to attend an opening, which was well attended and super fun. despite the injury.

the space is small and intimate. the directors are thoughtful and well versed. they are only open on saturdays, but you can make an appointment. please do. this is a show that should be seen.

and while you're there, visit a couple of the other great spots in the neighborhood, like my new (well, not so new) favorite, the wine thief for dinner. or earth, bread + brewery for pizzas, or infusion for coffee. yum. or jean-jaques to buy local handmade craft. or one salon to get a haircut. ok, is it obvious i want to support the local economy? and also, i'm a big fan of doing a lot of things while i'm in a specific neighborhood. if you're going to go, you may as well see all you can see.

macas: http://www.mountairycontemporary.com/

brenna k. murphy: http://www.inliquid.com/artist/murphy_brenna/murphy.php

chrissy day: http://www.chrissyday.com/