TWO FEET IN ONE SHOE: ARMEN ELOYAN
E-Flux, NY
May 29 2007
1 June – 20 July, 2007
Preview 31 May, 6 – 8pm
Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art is pleased to present
Two feet in one shoe: Armen Eloyan, the first solo exhibition of
Eloyan’s paintings in a UK institution.
Armen Eloyan’s paintings adeptly play out an apocalyptic fantasy
world of anxiety, brutality, sexuality and the grotesque with the
contradictory light-heartedness of a cartoon. His theatrical scenes
explore the fragility of life as well as the boundaries separating
security from chaos, comedy from violence and pleasure from cruelty.
Crucially Eloyan’s strikingly gestural paintings use both humour
and horror in a manner that engages him emotionally, mentally and
physically. The brash, attractive, dark colours Eloyan employs collide
and coexist whilst unsettling any sense of harmony in the work.
The instinctive approach Eloyan applies to his painting draws on his
emotional bond to an array of collective and personal experiences.
Significantly these are rooted in his early years in Yerevan, Armenia
yet also claim reference to propaganda, art history, cinema, television
and popular music. Clearly there is a narrative element in Eloyan’s
work however this is disturbingly disrupted by a sense of desolation
and anxiety.
Two feet in one shoe is an exhibition imbued with Eloyan’s verve, vigor
and desire to celebrate the act of painting. His intuitive relationship
to painting is infused with a need to delve beneath the layers of pure
aesthetic and get to the crux with what is messy, foul and discordant.
Two feet in one shoe: Armen Eloyan is accompanied by a full-colour
catalogue with essays by Ziba de Weck Ardalan and Philippe Pirotte.
Born in Yerevan, Armenia in 1966 Armen Eloyan now lives and works in
Amsterdam and Zurich.
Earlier this year, Eloyan had a solo exhibition in the Project Room at
Centre Culturel Suisse, Paris (FR). During 2006, he had a one person
exhibition at Galerie Bob van Orsouw, Zurich (CH) and took part in a
group show at Kunsthalle Bern (CH). In 2005, Eloyan participated in
various exhibitions at l’Arte Contemporanea Luigi Pecci, Prato (I)
and at Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten, Amsterdam (NL).
Opening hours: Tues-Sat, 10 am-6 pm. Sun 12-5 pm
Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art is a non-profit space
devoted to promoting contemporary art for the benefit of the public.
Parasol unit is a privately funded charity with possible and future
additional funding from the public and private sectors. The core
activity of Parasol unit is to showcase the work of contemporary
artists from around the world. Each year, the foundation mounts three
or four exhibitions in various media, such as sculpture, painting,
installation, video, or photography, for which some works might be
specifically commissioned. Each exhibition is usually accompanied by
a publication. Parasol unit does not charge admission fee.
For more information or images please contact cliodhna@parasol-unit.org
or Cliodhna Murphy at 44 (0)20 7490 7373
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