Colorado artist Max Kauffman will be bringing his detailed and layered works of art to Chicago next week as he opens his new solo R’Fauh at Pawn Works in Chicago. Max is also planning a sculpture installation which you can see an early stage of after the jump. If you’re in the area you should definitely check it out, as his work almost takes a new form when seen in person.
From the artist:
R’fuah: a renewal of spirit. A way of looking at things you hold dear, without idolizing them: knowing that these inanimate things you keep are important because of the emotions you impart on them. Are they real? Are the emotional ties meaningful because of the item or because of the emotion itself?
These thing we hold dear: they keep us happy, bittersweet, positive, appreciative of the things in our life. Why? Are they simply coping mechanisms or do they actually uplift us? From prophets and idols and relics to symbols and talismans of today, we alternately assign them power and draw power from them. We are actually pulling on the strength within ourselves, our thoughts and spirits when we look to these things. When we fall on dark times, we become even more attached to the inanimate—sure and committed to the power we believe they bring, until the storm passes and we relinquish them until next time.
This renewal, this evolution, this cycle of spirit and material. Does it make us more or less human? By putting our faith in objects, are we overpowering or overpowered by them? They calm us; they bring us peace. R’fuah.
R’fuah will feature new mixed media paintings on paper and wood, ceramic works and a site specific installation.
Pawn Works
1050 N. Damen Ave
Chicago, Il
(312) 841-3986
1 comment so far ↓
His work has an exotic mesmerizing quality to it, almost like Scheherazade, telling her stories to the king. It draws the viewer in to explore their own fantasies, with a touch of whimsy. One of these pieces will definitely find their way into my home.
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