“Array”

Birds, words and persona moments make up CTRL Gallery’s latest exhibition

Comments (0) By Dusti Rhodes Thursday, Sep 6 2007

For “Array,” Heimir Björgúlfsson uses birds to relate his fish-out-of-water feelings. The Iceland-born, now L.A.-based artist’s collages introduce fowl (mostly from his native land) to the mean streets of Hollywood. Much like Björgúlfsson had to adapt to his surroundings, so do his birds, which are superimposed into photographs of L.A. scenes such as dumpsters and parks. For the most part, the feathered fellows seem to be getting along nicely, but in his large wall sculpture habits harmful of great, things don’t seem to be going well. Thick, black lines stretch from the edge of the wall toward the center, where they meet at a beer bottle. Sticking out from the bottle is a cactus, where the skeleton of what appears to be a toucan is perched. Viewers can’t tell where the bird came from, or even where it is, as Björgúlfsson shows the vulnerability of those too stubborn to adapt or too afraid to.

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“Array” is a three-artist show that also features the personal paintings of Erin Arnold, who illustrates scenes from her life, as well as the work of dictionary enthusiast Pamela Chapman, who paints blown-up dictionary images. Definitions of words such as “love” and “snob” are carefully, colorfully written on solid and patterned backgrounds. See this impressive array from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today.
Tuesdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Starts: Sept. 6. Continues through Oct. 13, 2007