JESSICA DRENK + SHAWN SMITH 8-bit and mixed media sculptures April 7, 2011

April 7 to May 14, 2011; Opening Reception Thursday, April 7, 5:30-7:30pm

Cain Schulte Contemporary Art San Francisco is pleased to present an exhibition of new work by Jessica Drenk and Shawn Smith, featuring 8-bit and mixed media sculptures.

Shawn Smith's work investigates the slippery intersection between the digital world and reality; specifically, the way we experience nature through technology. Starting from the observation that images of "nature" on TV or on a computer screen are really only seeing patterns of pixilated light, Smith recreates three-dimensional sculptural representations of these two-dimensional images with small wood cubes, resembling 8-bit pixels, which resolve into much larger sculptures representing natural forms. Through the process of pixilation, color is distilled, some bits of information are lost, and the form is abstracted. Smith builds his "things"-as he calls them-pixel by pixel to understand how each pixel plays a crucial role in the identity of an object.

Jessica Drenk's work is also influenced by systems of information. The breadth of the work included in the exhibition includes a wood pieces series (Processions), which has a direct material similarity, as well as a pixilated or digital sensibility, to Smith's work. But while Smith starts from an accumulation of small wooden pieces to create an organic form, Drenk's work here results into non-representational imagery and repetitive, post-minimalist patterns. Other works on display include sculptured books, altered with a process that involves submerging found books in wax, then twisting and chiseling them until they become abstract forms, as well as a series of works made of disposable objects like toothpicks, pencils, coffee filters, Q-tips. Manipulating these common materials in unexpected ways, Drenk creates objects reminiscent of the natural world, but entirely unique.

Official Website: http://cainschulte.com/exhibitions/ex_drenk_smith_2011.html