Daniel T. Gaitor-Lomack “XXXIII Lighters on My Dresser”

Daniel T. Gaitor-Lomack “XXXIII Lighters on My Dresser”

Lyles & King

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Outdoor Sculpture Space

Lyles & King presents XXXIII Lighters on My Dresser, a solo exhibition of new sculptures, paintings, and performances by Daniel T. Gaitor-Lomack in our Outdoor Sculpture Space.

Raised in Neptune, New Jersey, Gaitor-Lomack chose not to follow a typically professionalized artistic path. His approach is both intuitive—dependent on chance, or the vagaries of the moment—and deeply considered. Materials from the street speak to the artist, who in turn breathes fresh life into them with each energizing, iterative performance. An ethos of reinvention and reincarnation animates his practice and lies at the core of XXXIII Lighters on My Dresser.

Continuing to expand his New York presence, Gaitor-Lomack unveils a conceptual performance installation informed by art history and personal biography. Some works in the exhibition were generated at NXTHVN, in the heart of the Dixwell community in New Haven, CT, where he is a current artist-in-residence, and others will be created on-site using materials culled from the corners, cracks, and concrete of downtown Manhattan.

Gaitor-Lomack’s practice involves a tireless triangulation between material, space, and his own body, propelled by a spiritual will to express and create light. This exhibition is conceived of as a living entity; there are no static objects here, but rather a series of symbolic materials in an evolving state of flux. The sculptures are both totemic—scenes of contemplation and reverence—and functional. Gaitor-Lomack activates them during performances that are at times tightly choreographed, at times improvisational and reactive. The artist’s intensely physical explorations and use of loaded symbols uniquely engages contemporary conceptual and performance art, from David Hammons to Pope.L., and the broader history of assemblage sculpture.

Holding court at the center of the space is Lester (VII) (Guardians of the Afro Fantasy), an interpretation of the Greek god Apollo composed of furled fencing, a mop, a hockey stick, coconuts, and a car fender. Unpretentious and visceral, these materials are ambitiously put to work. Envisioning his assemblages as “charged bricolage,” Gaitor-Lomack leverages meaning out of humble objects: a children’s plastic tricycle, an antique chair leg with a metal fence spike bound to a rock with twine. Sly wordplay completes the equation: two lengths of simple metal become a noble weapon in a sculpture titled Same Sword They Knight You, They’re Gonna Good Night You With. A wooden A-frame structure towers over these works, pulling the eye up towards the heavens, acting both as a stage and altar that elevates and liberates. The letter A becomes a subtle point of connection, for those willing to look: A-frame, the Greek god Apollo, the Apollo Theater, Cy Twombly’s Apollo, and Ghostface Killa’s song “Apollo Kids” are all inspirations for Gaitor-Lomack’s constructions.

XXXIII Lighters on My Dresser is an eclectic homage that weaves together disparate eras, influences, and narratives. Gaitor-Lomack ushers myth into reality and provides a generative space for future narratives.

“The art world is what you want it to be—that’s how I see it, taste it, cut through it, and endure it. I’ve been through a lot of tough times, and what the art world has to offer is nowhere near as risky. So therefore I become the risk within the art world.” - Daniel T. Gaitor-Lomack

Daniel T. Gaitor-Lomack (b. 1988, Neptune, NJ) is a multidisciplinary artist living and working between New Haven, New York City, and Los Angeles. His work has been exhibited at Night Gallery, Los Angeles, US; Alyssa Davis Gallery, New York, US; LAXART, Los Angeles, US (curated by Hamza Walker & Catherine Taft); Torrance Art Museum, Torrance, US; BBQLA, Los Angeles, CA; Maple St. Construct, Omaha, US; and many others. His work will be exhibited in forthcoming exhibitions at Jeffrey Dietch, Los Angeles, US and James Cohan Gallery, New York, US. Gaitor-Lomack is a current artist-in-residence at NXTHVN, New Haven, US.

Media

• Sculpture

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