By Sunni Pike
Curator and artist Carrie Ann Baade reeked of mystery and curiosity as she expressed her passion for “monsters” at the opening of the “Cute and Creepy” exhibition, shown at the Dedo Maranville Fine Arts Gallery in October 2017. Her dark Victorian Gothic appearance matched the surrounding artwork, intriguing the audience to learn more. She was the speaker of the night, lecturing about her artwork as well as the other six artists. The collection included works from: Carrie Ann Baade, Jessica Joselyn, Laurie Hogan, Chris Marrs, Chet Zar, Lori Field, and Kelly Boehmer.
This was not the first exhibition of “Cute and Creepy.” Baade is the curator and professor at Florida State University, where the first exhibition was held in 2015. She described the artwork as narrative and imaginative art that hit the art world at just the precise moment. It was the beginning of the “mark” of the movement celebrating dark art and Pop Surrealism. Through each piece there portrayed a sense of reality, fantasy and purpose of each artist. We see the beauty in freaks and in monsters is a matter of aesthetics. Walking into the gallery, you can feel the works come to life in their own supernatural way.
Once you are in the gallery you are immediately greeted with works in two and three dimensions of various sizes. These terrifyingly intriguing pieces capture your attention, especially the large soft sculpture lurking in the center of the gallery. Kelly Boehmer creates her pieces with magical and monstrous personalities. Her carnivalesque depth and light create stories with a tragic sense of humor. Pink Garden draws you in with her use of color and its large-scale form. Boehmer mimics a palm tree with an elephant sitting underneath in her own unconventional use of materials. She uses bright patterned fabric to pull you in and your attention is diverted to the many details. She creates an illusion of imaginative creatures in her own way: baby alligators dressed in lacey pink dresses, a fawn wearing sunglasses, and monkeys in tutus. Her playful use of fabrics and taxidermy creates a curiosity on the viewer. They are no longer creatures to be feared but merely an expression of imaginative play.
Across the gallery you are greeted with the playful, entrancing pieces of Jessica Joslin. She uses real skulls to create sentimental three-dimensional pieces that captivate your interest. Max stood out by being disturbingly cute. She portrayed an adorable household pet in such a harmless way that you almost do not realize it is a canine skeleton. These creatures reflect real and imaginative animals, the living and the dead. The intricate details of brass and bone enhances your appreciation of her craftsmanship. The curator did a great job with the flow of the three-dimensional pieces in the center, creating a diagonal line through the gallery. Going from these eccentric sculptures moving on to the otherworldly two-dimensional works.
Moving from three-dimensional sculptures to paintings and an artist video, the gallery was well thought out in terms of placement. You move fluidly throughout the room, stopping at each piece with more curiosity and questions than the next. The two-dimensional pieces range from paintings to mixed media. Artist conveyed their own message through their artworks. They left much interpretation to the audience. Hogan wanted to desexualize the femininity of bunnies in her art, whereas Zar wanted to rally against the effects of humanity.
Overall “Cute and Creepy” was a successful show planned just around the time of Halloween. I encourage anyone to look into the whimsical monsters of these artists. The reflection of our humanity is closely correlated with the attributes of these creatures. They establish a question, what is the monster? Who is the monster? And what differentiates us from them? It is for a daring audience; an audience open to exploring the strange beauty and the ecstasy inherent in our culture’s aversions.