The latest exhibition at The Dryansky Gallery is David Mitchell’s Boundaries, running from January 29 to March 12. For the British-born, Southeast Asia-based artist, this is the first solo exhibition on the West Coast. A curated selection of his abstract prints, including work from his 2012 and 2014 series, are being shown to the public for the first time, and capture the essence of the urban structure through shape, color and lines. Many of his color images challenge the expectations of conventional photography, drawing the mind in through creativity and imagination.
“I first encountered Mitchell's work at RMA Institute in Bangkok, Thailand in 2011. I was struck by the conundrum it presented—I had no idea how the work was created or that it was even photography at all,” explains The Dryansky Gallery co-director, Jilian Adi Monribot. “In viewing his work, drawn to its enigmatic depiction of something both modern and contemporary at the same time, I felt I was invited into someone’s smart, deep and analytical mind; and I found the invitation into that head-space compelling. I knew immediately that I wanted to exhibit this work.”
The photographs are created with sketches that are then transformed into collages and models, which are photographed and immediately disassembled. Channeling architecture through these creations and images, he is able to connect with and convey the emotion of a city without directly replicating it. It’s the symbolism and ideas of the thing rather than the thing itself, which drives Mitchell’s work.
