Catalyst Contemporary presents Manifest Presence, a group exhibition highlighting artists whose practices are centered around contemporary figure painting and demonstrate various moments of resilience, love, acceptance, humor, and hope. The featured artists include Damon Arhos, Christopher Batten, Joan Cox, William S. Dutterer, Kate Kretz, and Thiang Uk.
A common element besides figures and portraits in this collection of artists is the presence of symbolism and iconography. For example, Kate Kretz’s Sacred Ovaries - a self-portrait done in the style of religious iconographic images - show the traditional halo, not around her head but instead, her uterus and ovaries. Another artist who uses symbolism is Christopher Batten whose portraits of young African-American youth include various insects with different meanings. One such example is Young Warrior in Repose, where moths accompany the almost silhouette portrait - an insect that symbolizes change and that freedom and liberation are around the corner.
Damon Arhos’ on the other hand, uses the iconography of deer in connection to his childhood in Texas as well as the cultural icon of actress Agnes Moorehead - the aunt on the show Bewitched - merged with his own self-portrait. Arhos attempts to borrow some of her charm and self-confidence to counter his own personal feelings of shame around his own sexuality he felt in the past. Joan Cox’s work, on the other hand, offers images of lesbian couples in various scenes, often drawing imagery from art historical paintings. This inclusion of queer female couples placed back in the art historical canon is a direct nod and counter to the historical erasure of lesbians.
Further in the gallery are the works of William S. Dutterer and Thiang Uk. Both - in a sense - present internal landscapes. From Uk’s cultural images intertwined into an abstract and yet actual landscape woven inside various figures to Dutterer’s minimalistic internal landscapes, both artists’ works illustrate the fears and frustrations they found within themselves. For Uk, the fears and intimidation found during immigration, and for Dutterer, the frustration of only being one person who wanted to create large social change.
The title, Manifest Presence, refers to how these artists are not painting just reflections of themselves but are instead capturing the presence of various psychological, societal, and historical apparatuses that they find themselves navigating through.
