I’ve been intrigued by possibility of artists emerging from the far municipalities of our region – not just from the lofts and live-work studios of Vancouver’s east side. And sure enough ….
Surrey Art Gallery’s group exhibition Emergent showcases the work of three artists from an emerging wave of Surrey-based artists who are engaging in Metro Vancouver’s dynamic contemporary visual art scene from its fringes.
Patrick Cruz (b. Manila, 1987) attended University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts, and graduated from Emily Carr University of Art + Design. Over the past few years, Cruz’s art has investigated the aesthetics and potentialities of image making through contemporary social networking culture.
Guildford Drift allows the artist to discover a form that captures the abstract spatial qualities of the neighbourhood he has grown up in.
Cruz uses the configuration of a hedge to guide the viewer through the darkened room. At the same time, the colour pattern’s incorporation into the hedge row suggests a tight relationship between suburban life and television culture. This form of concealed looking – peering, peeping – through the hedge at the partially concealed videos, suggests a particular form of voyeurism at the center of television viewing, personal computer usage, and low density living of semiurbanized landscapes.
Emergent (also with A.S. Dhillon and Debbie Teupah) continues to August 18. Admission to the exhibition is by donation. 13750 88 Avenue.
