Our Goblin Market: Media X at 1708

Chris Barr
Veronique Cote
Althea Georrgelas
Michael Takeo Magruder
Rachele Riley
Matthew Kenyon
Kalika Gorski
Patrick Gregory
Bob Paris

Media outlets frequently mislead the public by failling to provide important facts and information in their coverage of current events and news. 1708 Gallery’s election year exhibition Media X, curated by Vaughn Whitney Garland, cuts through the absence of the real story and exposes what many media agencies refuse to cover completely or not at all. Media X opens on October 17th and will be on view until November 22nd. The nine international artists in this exhibition seek to build awareness to the normality of our present day fears and blindness toward conditions left unanswered by using the vocabulary and the spectacle of the media to talk about the media itself. Either commenting on the media’s manipulation of news or documenting the media’s placement of importance on information, the Media X artists expose a visual crossover between what we see and what we don’t. In doing so the Media X artists turn the tables on the media machine in hopes of a mirrored documentation which represents an individual presence in our fast paced media driven world.

Media X artists include Matt Kenyon, Chris Barr, Véronique Côté, Patrick Gregory, Kalika Gorski, Rachele Riley, Michael Takeo Magruder, Bob Paris and Althea Georgelas. The artists tell the story of our present situations across the world with a focus on the Iraq War, by rearranging, uncovering, and manipulating the streaming information acquired through news sources to bring about awareness to our daily consciousness. Media X, which will include drawings, photography, multi and interactive media, presents a fresh perspective on the importance visual language plays in today’s media.

About the artists’ work:

Chris Barr andVéronique Côté will produce a daily “news cast,” which will be streamed to the Gallery interviewing friends, gallery visitors and strangers about current events. Rather than covering the daily political events, the piece operates under the feminist mantra of “the personal is political.”

Althea Georgelas’ work focuses on the need for social freedom and expression and criticizes the political and cultural ideology of current times.

Michael Takeo Magruder’s video work considers the evolution of our collective history through the real-time analysis of global news information networks.

Rachele Riley’s prints from web-based imagery investigate the visual representation of violence in our everyday existence.

Matthew Kenyon’s installation Puddle, consists of motor-oil like material displaying text that comments on the current US energy policy.

Kalika Gorski’s drawings are a direct reflection of the tension resulting from a prolonged war in Iraq, coupled with the recent possibility of invading Iran, and the building tension between Muslim and non-Muslim communities worldwide. Her work focuses on the role that international women revolutionaries and female paramilitaries play within the global, socio-political economy of violence.

Patrick Gregory is creating a new film exploring how media has changed, how and what he sees as well as how it continues to shape the opinions and perspectives of many people- not only exploring content but also the volume of media. Consciously or unconsciously, the ideas portrayed by media are influencing our world and in this case, his sensibilities.

Bob Paris uses news media as the subject in his multi-media installation.

About the Curator:

Vaughn Whitney Garland, Chair of the Exhibitions Committee and on the Board of Directors of 1708 Gallery, has been studying the daily internet news streams of various news agencies. Over several years Mr. Garland began to evaluate the visual communication of opinions and positions used by the media to determine information directed toward a mass audience. The starting point of the Media X exhibition came when Mr. Garland recognized the placement of topics within the visual streaming news formats.

About 1708 Gallery:

1708 Gallery is one of the oldest artist run galleries in the country committed to expanding the understanding, development, and appreciation of contemporary art. Through diverse exhibitions, educational programs and services for artists and the community, the Gallery provides a forum for dialogue that contributes to the development and creation of culture

Media X panel discussion and Opening Night.

Justin Lincoln opens the panel.

Panelists included Media X artists Matt Kenyon, Rachele Riley, Bob Paris, Chris Barr, Veronique Cote, Althea Georgelas and Patrick Gregory as well as Media X curator Vaughn Whitney Garland. Special guests included Robert Hodierne, Associate Professor of Journalism at the University of Richmond and 1708 Gallery's Education and Outreach Chair, Justin Lincoln.