OTHER WORLDLY examines the places, simultaneously real and imagined, as they are perceived and processed within an artist’s creative mind. The exhibition features two artists who work within the boundaries of a monochrome palette, traveling the world to discover landscapes full of magic and mystery. Both artists compose within neutral fields of space, making “marks” utilizing unlikely media—Henthorne using a camera and Akiko Kotani, thread. The contrast of materials results in surprisingly complimentary bodies of work.
Kotani’s stitched paper works suggest landscapes from above. Teetering in the realm of complete abstraction, these “drawings” bridge the span of record and myth. Delicate, tactile, and fragile are words that come to mind when examining her work closely—a pairing of elegant fine art paper pierced by hundreds of stitches of black silk thread. No mark is reversible, so every gesture is recorded and an integral part of the resulting composition.
MORE ABOUT HENTHORNE:
“This newly released series of black and white landscape photographs are the epitome of minimalist aesthetic,” says curator Robin Perry Dana. “Henthorne’s dreamlike compositions present water and sky as barely discernible gradients of soft gray penetrated by vertical black lines that function as both tool and architecture hovering in space.”
His waterscapes are created using epic exposures that yield the minimalistic high-contrast works of art that have become his signature style. His process captures cumulative time and the output offers the viewer an experience that the human eye is unable to capture on its own — an alternate perspective on reality.
Originally from the Midwest, Henthorne has been based in Florida since 1994. For the past 20 years, his work has taken him around the world. Every year he spends many months abroad creating iconic images that ultimately become part of collections featured in finely crafted publications. His limited-edition photographs are included in public and private art collections all over the world.
MORE ABOUT AKIKO KOTANI:
Much of the work in this exhibition uses the self-derived technique of stitching dots onto paper. This way of working started during the artist’s sojourn in Istanbul, Turkey. Not having access to the material and tools she was accustomed to using back home, the artist started to stitch paper she brought with her on the journey. After spending 2 years living in Istanbul, Akiko Kotani returned to the US inspired by the memory of the lingering enchantment of the Bosphorus Strait. Upon returning to her studio, Kotani continued to utilize this technique to produce works from the memories she had stored while living abroad.
Kotani’s exhibit is partially funded by the 2018 Individual Artist Grant from the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance, FL.