Iron Gate East, a new company presenting art shows and artist talks at alternative venues, debuted its first program on Saturday, February 24, 2018 at The Spur, which has its temporary home at the Southampton Social Club in Southampton, NY. Around 150 people attended the launch party which featured music spun by a deejay, an exhibiting artist talk, cocktails and the opening of a contemporary art group show featuring three artists, according to Iron Gate East founder Kelcey Edwards. "Ghosts of the Inanimate" presents art by Belgian-American artist Hedwig Brouckaert, American artist Caleb Freese and South Korean-American artist Jourdain Jongwon Lee. Curated by Edwards, all three artists are currently based in Brooklyn.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better turnout,” stated The Spur Founder Ashley Heather in the post-event announcement. “We had anticipated a crowd of 50 or 60, so this just exceeded all expectations.”
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Artist and curator Lori Horowitz, exhibiting artist Jourdain Jongwon Lee and Corinne Erni, Curator of Special Projects, Parrish Art Museum. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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"Ghosts of the Inanimate" is the first in a series of planned exhibitions presented by Iron Gate East at The Spur, a new social club for entrepreneurs and innovators on the East End. The art was installed throughout the Southampton Social Club in often unexpected places such as set in front of curtains as well as suspended by walls. The trio of artists were selected for art that shares a quality of “otherworldliness” that seems to “reflect on the past, and harness the transformative power of the present to imagine a different-and possibly better-future,” explained Edwards.
During the artist talk, Brouckaert discussed her use of hair in her work, and how the revulsion evoked by the strands of her own hair she uses to stitch together her collages clashes with the angelic compositions of magazine cutouts of models’ hairstyles. Freese—a licensed mountain climbing and white water river rafting guide—spoke about his connection to wilderness, and his use of topographical map making in layering imagined (and disappearing) naturescapes over his urban drawings and energetic, layered paintings. Lee described her experience of growing up in South Korea, and how the importance of shamanism influenced his desire to create his current series, “Golem,” titled after the figure from Jewish folklore, as well as his efforts to create art works using found objects that embody the protective energy of guardian spirits.
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Exhibiting Artists Hedwig Brouckaert, Caleb Freese and Jourdain Jongwon Lee discuss their work at the launch of Iron Gate East. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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After the artist talk, the room was energized through the buzz of conversation, punctuated by subdued electronic music from DJ Dave pulsing and passed hors d'oeuvres and drinks, provided by Southampton Social Club. The launch party attracted a diverse mix of people from the East End art scene, The Spur membership club as well as designers and others. Continue scrolling to see who made the scene a special one.
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Art dealer James Salomon of Solomon Contemporary with Kelcey Edwards, Founder of Iron Gate East. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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Tote Taxi founder and CEO Danielle Candela,Hampton Farms owner Sandra Sadowsk and Martyna Sokol. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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Crowd at the Reception. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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JP Morgan Bank VP and Marketing Manager Katherine Berger, Angela Walker and Una Green. Photo by Marley Slotkin. Courtesy Iron Gate East.
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BASIC FACTS: "Ghosts of the Inanimate" will remain on view through March 25, 2018. The show can be viewed Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and by appointment by contacting Kelcey Edwards at [email protected] or by calling 512-773-5994. The exhibition features art by Hedwig Brouckaert, Caleb Freese and Jourdain Jongwon Lee. www.irongateeast.com.
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