Terence Koh “Bee Chapel”
Andrew Edlin Gallery
This event has ended.
Andrew Edlin Gallery presents “terence koh: bee chapel,” a solo exhibition, and the artist’s first show with the gallery. Known for his atmospheric and severe installations, Terence Koh’s work has roots in performance art and mysticism. According to writer Agustín Pérez Rubio, “Koh’s creativity is not about the construction of a character. Rather, it is an act of political or social relevance with an evergrowing collective consciousness (1).”
In 2014, Koh moved from New York City to an isolated location Upstate in order to immerse himself in Nature. In 2015, the artist built his first bee chapel in the forest on his land, and began a series of collages using beeswax, organic materials and found images, including postcards and stamps from foreign countries and politically charged photographs.
For the exhibition, Koh will transform the gallery into a “Living Garden of Eden,” creating distinct spaces named after the seven days of the week. The floors will be covered with topsoil, and the gallery powered by solar panels, creating an atmospheric space that is tranquil, theatrical and political. Other elements include a living apple tree, beeswax sculptures and collages, sound recording of two black holes colliding a billion light years away, and the bee chapel itself. Built as a sanctuary for bees, the chapel will connect to the outside via an acrylic tube, allowing them to pollinate and return.
The opening of the exhibition will be a daylong event beginning with a procession at 2 PM from 50 East 1st street to the gallery at 212 Bowery. The artist has asked participants to bring signs that read “NOW.” A poetry reading and musical performance will begin at 3:30.
Terence Koh was born in 1977 in Beijing, China and raised in Mississauga, Ontario. He received his BA from the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design in Vancouver. Koh’s work was included in the 2004 Whitney Biennial and the 2008 Yokohama Triennial. Solo exhibitions include Kunsthalle Zürich, Switzerland (2006); the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2007); MUSAC, León, Spain (2008); Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt, Germany (2008); Mary Boone Gallery, New York (2011); and the McMichael Museum, Toronto (2014). His work is in the permanent collections of many institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York and the Tate Modern, London, England.
1. Agustín Pérez Rubio, “Terence Koh: When the personal is political” (Flash Art, 2011)
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Schedule
from May 21, 2016 to July 29, 2016
Opening Reception on 2016-05-21 from 12:00 to 18:00
March to Gallery: 2PM, Beginning at 50 East 1st Street Poetry Reading & Performance: 3:30PM in the gallery