Basketball Sucks, Cleveland Rocks
Clear Signs @ Wall Eye Gallery
Heading in the door of Cleveland’s newest gallery you always have a strong sense of the city. To your right is the Cleveland skyline rising over old brick buildings, behind you is the West Side Ecumenical Ministry campus and to your left are the buzzing streets of the new Gordon Square Arts District. The neighborhood has a historical feel with just a few modern elements, the glass eyes of Wall Eye inlaid into the red brick of the building.
As we came in out of the hot summer air, we were transported into a trendy, hip art scene that could have been transposed into any major metropolitan area. Many of the young artists were circling the room, clutching sweaty beverage glasses, meeting new fans and greeting returning supporters. The space was alive with bodies milling and pausing to drink in the artwork. The first impressions of a show are always the ones that stick with you, and as we turned the first corner into the gallery, I couldn’t help noticing a very, very familiar face.
Peering out of the wall with a jeering smile was Cleveland’s own hero-turned-villain, LeBron James. Immediately, gallery-goers who followed all the recent hoopla about the athlete must have been drawn to the piece as I was, waiting to see what the commentary was. One had to look no further than the title of the piece, BASKETBALL SUCKS. Surrounding the cheesing LeBron were photographs of basketball artwork done by some of Jason Byers’ [pictured, above] friends and colleagues, along with a photo of a Luis Vuitton basketball. When asked about the piece, Byers smiled, “I have never been a fan of basketball,” he said. He explained that the buzz about LeBron and the Luis Vuitton basketball had inspired him. “I looked for the silliest photo of LeBron I could find,” he said. And, he let us in on a little secret. “The LeBron James signature? I signed it,” he said with mirth.
This first work introduced viewers into a festival of strong graphic elements and pieces that were highly charged with meaning and relevance. The pieces in Clear Signs, an exhibition co-curated by artist William Schwartz and gallery co-owner and artist Joe Ayala challenge viewers to look beyond the literal and experience a political, social or world-view commentary that wasn’t always handed to the audience in an easily digestible way. Another piece that stood out was titled “Abstract Painting (Joe would be thirty now)” by Jim Karpinski [pictured at left]. The painting, an abstract with a large skeleton and military themes elicited immediate emotion for me. The idea that a young man had lost his life to war, perhaps at 18 or 21, and now ten years later, he would be thirty now. The painting was full of meaning and mental images of a family mourning and of friends meditating on the years of life lost for a cause. Depending on how you feel about the current military involvement around the world, this piece had clear political connotations, as did many of the works in the exhibit.A collection of 7 innovative and provocative artists, the show was organized by William Schwartz, who called on the talents of artists he has met and worked with throughout his career in order to put together this collection of uniquely challenging pieces. The exhibition is open by appointment through 9/10. I highly recommend making an appointment to walk through with intimate commentary from one of the gallery’s owners or one of the co-curators. Just be sure not to step on the radiating neon sculpture installed on the floor and don’t miss the gallery’s lower level with their artist’s boutique. I rarely enter the boutique without finding something I literally must have, for myself, or for someone in my life who appreciates art. And, if nothing else, someone in Cleveland needs to buy “BASKETBALL SUCKS” (if they haven’t already). It’s the perfect addition to any Cleveland sports collection.
Wall Eye Gallery’s Exhibition Clear Signs is open by appointment through Fri 9/10. Visit the gallery website at www.WallEyeGallery.com to learn more about this and upcoming shows.
Julie Cajigas is a Cleveland girl who grew up on the East & West Side and now lives near Akron – she’s got the whole town covered! Cajigas holds degrees in Communication & Music from Cleveland State University and is currently pursuing her Masters in Communication at CSU.