Sarcastic, Serious, Scary – Larry McKim
September 6 – October 1, 2016 ( Opening Reception – September 10, 6-8pm )
Larry McKim’s political paintings in his upcoming exhibit, Sarcastic, Serious, Scary. For this show, McKim selected works from three separate series painted over the past two years, all inspired by the current political climate.
The first series is a group of paintings representing anonymous homeless people sleeping on the street. They are presented freestanding at floor level. Because the figures in the paintings are nearly life sized, they create an encounter for the viewer which may feel uncomfortably real. This group is the serious portion of the exhibit.
The second series is in response to the recent Republican presidential primary and it depicts seven of the candidates sleeping on the street as though they were homeless. These works are dyptichs and nearly nine feet wide. These imagined scenes illustrate the possibility that the experience of being homeless might alter the basic beliefs of this group of rich and powerful politicians. This group is the sarcastic portion of the exhibit.
The third is a group of the Republican presidential candidates depicting only their heads. Each is on a small canvas accompanied by brief written examples of their platform beliefs. This is the scary portion of the exhibit.