Mark Mellett: A Moment in Time in the Life of an Acrobat

Mark Mellett: A Moment in Time in the Life of an Acrobat

Exhibition in Ron Cohn Gallery

My images of acrobats shown in the midst of a performance are meant to be symbolic on a number of levels and arise from my thoughts on our human situation.

The first theme relates to the passage of time.  The images of bodies moving through space symbolize for me life’s constant moving forward in time. I use a stamp-like presentation in some of my work to create an appearance of capturing a moment in time. The figures fade in and out, in a suspended moment of arrested motion.

Showing an act in mid-performance puts the viewer in a position to have to guess as to how the acrobat would land the routine.  The acrobat’s body position can suggest an experience of joy or exhilaration, or it can be of danger.

My final theme concerns a human’s relation to ultimate truth.  At birth, we are thrust into life and act out our lives without knowledge of the ultimate truth of our existence. My paintings of human action in undefined contexts, without reference to the ground under the subject’s feet, represents the situation of a person before a metanarrative, like one provided by religious faith, is applied.  We are but subjects acting out in space without recourse to an eternal or meaningful reality.

Holiday Art Exhibition guest and HAC artist members:
Jude Asher, Schroeder Cherry, Zachary Diaz, Diane Dennis, Jessica Devilbiss, Jim Doran, Grace Doyle, Nancy Keene Fishel, Tim Jankowiak, Amy Klainer, Dara Lorenzo, Greg McLemore, Mark Mellett, David Mintzer, Debra Parks, L. Nef’fahtiti Partlow-Myrick, Aaron Oldenburg, Linda Popp, Lynn Poshepny, Theresa Reuter, Michael Seipp, Bridget Z. Sullivan, Richard Sullivan, Maxine Taylor,  Malaun Wright, & Monica Youn.

About Hamilton Arts Collective | Hamilton Gallery

Hamilton Arts Collective | Hamilton Gallery strives to support the arts in Baltimore City and in the Hamilton-Lauraville community by means of providing space for artistic expression, creative exploration, and community involvement. HAC|HG is a 100% volunteer run 501c3 non-profit, and its mission is to be a community resource. We welcome creative initiatives that meet the needs of the community. Artists and those who support the arts from our community and elsewhere are invited to be involved.

Hamilton Arts Collective | Hamilton Gallery exhibition activities are supported by Maryland State Art Council Creativity Grant funds and BOPA Creativity Grant Funds.

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