ICYMI - Chapter One
The Brea Gallery started the 2020 year off with a brand new, completely unique exhibition Chapter One. This curated art exhibit featured 17 artists from around the country and explored the art of storytelling. The mission was to dive into original narratives, travel to mystical realms, and meet strange, mysterious characters through the mediums of painting, illustration, stop-motion film, a large scale mural and more.
Unfortunately, the Gallery had to close Chapter One to the public due to COVID-19 health concerns one week early. So we’re providing some additional material here for all those visitors who didn’t get a chance to experience this fantastical show in person!
Show card featuring the work of Virginie Mazureau
Curator’s Statement
Chapter One is a fantasy themed group exhibition that explores the art of storytelling and the possibilities of imagination. Visitors are invited to dive into unique narratives that take place in mystical lands where they will meet sometimes whimsical, sometimes dark characters. While they may draw inspiration from a cherished childhood character or from an age-old fairy tale, the artists brought together in this exhibit are themselves the storytellers of an age, digging deep into their subconscious in order to bring these stories to life on paper and canvas.
Mediums such as illustration and stop-motion are often disregarded as not being ‘fine art’ and are therefore far less likely to be featured in gallery exhibitions than say oil painting or photography. As well, advances in creative technologies such as Procreate that allow artists to make artwork digitally are often overlooked in the same vein. However, artists working in these mediums are currently at the forefront of exciting, emerging trends in the art world and this show was the perfect opportunity to highlight these styles of creating. Chapter One features painting in many forms, drawing, digital illustration, stop-motion, sculpture, mural art, and printmaking, in addition to an interactive Virtual Reality experience and hands-on crafts for visitors.
This exhibition is about more than just the artwork on display, it is also about the painting you walk away from only to wonder what happens next to this character that you’ve spent so little time with, but are already so attached to. It’s about a child leaving the gallery with a newfound inspiration to keep drawing their weird comics in art class, because some day people might want to know the end of that story. It’s about a magical setting that you had simply never imagined before, but now desperately yearn to visit. This exhibition is about the child in each of us that yearns to be awoken every so often, that allows us to reconnect with our imaginations in ways we haven’t in years.
Heather Bowling
Curator/Director, Brea Gallery
![Creosote [Still]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593929833-DZY5Y2P21A4R8XL2V8UQ/RedNoseStudio_Creosote_still.jpg)
![The Optimist [Still]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593983482-XW7EZ4RVW1RTTSLLZ9W2/RedNoseStudio_TheOptimist_still.jpg)
![Untitled [2 Girls handstoface) Bunny in Military outfit Spoon on Belt]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593724947-PMB08W7PFWS3VQ7OAWPE/IMG_0232.jpg)
![Full Circle [Still]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593981207-UXGYRXNU2BLX2MPQXEV8/RedNoseStudio_FullCircle_still.jpg)
![Untitled [Bunny Family with Girl]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593714410-UCT8BTO2LV58RXTRW93Z/Carole+Gelker+Print+2.jpg)
![Untitled [Ferris Wheel Girl/Ice Cream Bunny w Cigarettes]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58bb213420099e5b48771d3b/1585593750978-NVX9UXFAZXB1KG2M7W7Q/Carole+Gelker+Print+3.jpg)
Angela Deane angeladeane
Brian Serway bserway
Carole Gelker carole_gelker
Caroline McFarlane-Watts talltalesproductions
Red Nose Studios rednosestudio
Deth P. Sun dethpsun
Emily Hart Wood the_papermoon_studios
Jennifer Nguyen jennifernguyenillustration
Katie Gamb katie_gamb
Kendra Binney kendra_binney
Marika Paz marikapaz
The Happy Joy thehappyjoy
Priscilla Moreno preemoreno
Stephanie Bayles guild_of_calamity
Theo Ellsworth theo_ellsworth_
Vanessa Gillings vanessagillings
Virginie Mazureau virginiemazureau
The Chapter One opening reception took place on February 1st and hosted several hundred visitors who were excited to meet artists, view the art, make their own creatures, listen to live music and enjoy the warm night out.
If you’d like to see more about this exhibit, check out additional photos on Instagram here!
Thank you to everyone who stopped by to see this exhibit and congratulations to the artists who participated, it was a great delight to be able to feature your work in our space.
We can’t wait to share our next exhibition soon!
