Steve West “This Place Has A Story”

Anthony Philip Fine Art

This event has ended.

Anthony Philip Fine Art presents a solo exhibition of works by Brooklyn artist Steve West, whose collection of pronto-plate lithographs is a sort of archeological accounting of a city in constant flux.

His keen observations of the details that make up something like a metropolis—the unearthed cobblestones, the broken concrete, the street art that is created and then removed, and again—all serve to describe a place and the forces at work there. DUMBO has served as his home for many years, and he has documented its transformation from geographic “other,” to the gateway of a new Brooklyn, and finally to homogeneity driven by gentrification and speculation.

Like his subjects, West is tenacious. There is every possibility of being buried alive in a place run amok by invasion. But even as the street crews hammer away and the foundations for new shiny things are excavated, he remains; a living record in stratification and sediment.

West’s current body of work, begun in 2014, seeks out the still-living character of this neighborhood hiding in the loam. It is there, in the chain link fences surrounding work sites, and here, in the graffiti half-covered by permits and advertisements. It is where a pile of broken concrete and rebar stands as testament to what once was, and as a signpost for what will be.

The pronto-plate lithography process that West uses to create these images is mechanical and handmade at the same time. Each begins as a photograph that is manipulated and photocopied onto a polyester plate, from which the prints are hand pulled. As each print in a series is pulled, variations occur, making each one unique.