COMB. // 4517 Liberty Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15224

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MAN BITES GOD.

Reducing the myriad, borderline schizophrenic themes that exist in this collection to a few coherent paragraphs is a maddening and hopeless task, but I can say that the one central, connecting thread that runs throughout these pieces is the heavy influence of cinema — specifically the horror and science fiction genres. To me, every individual work feels more like a movie than a painting. Some of the pictures’ titles are directly taken from my favorite films. ( The title of the show itself, is in-part a reference to one that, if you’ve seen it, might provide the most informative background for this mess. )

There is a story, often multi-layered within each piece, buried beneath the static surface. These are worlds in motion: systems unraveling; disparate themes converging; structures collapsing; with some struggling in futility, to reconstruct themselves. Some images may reveal slight glimpses of hidden monsters, whose totality lies beyond our capacity of comprehension; some might conceal personal demons, reconciled and absorbed into the abstracted landscape; some could hint at an evil still gestating in the depths, waiting patiently to reveal itself.

To make a piece of art, large or small, is a rebellious act. It stands in defiance of Homo sapiens’ natural inclination to destroy its cohabitants and surrounding environment, for its own short-sighted, fleeting benefit. While the act of creation is certainly not without its own inherent selfishness, its ultimate aim is to add something to the world, rather than subtract. This is what separates humanity, on a spiritual level, from the other, arguably more noble ( but unfortunate ) creatures roaming the earth.

Creation is subversion, and while we still seek to undermine the forces that brought us to this — Nature, The Demiurge, the snake in the Garden, call them what you will — we also must prepare to do battle with the new gods, the ones we are currently unleashing in this contemporary techno-dystopia. You can’t stop what’s coming, sadly, but that doesn’t mean that you have to like it. The fight can’t be won, but the fight is all that there is.

—ACR—

2024