MEDRIE MACPHEE

6 OCTOBER to 25 NOVEMBER

Barbara Edwards Contemporary is pleased to present a solo exhibition of new paintings and works on paper by Medrie MacPhee. Long known for using architectural references in her imagery that explored notions of a dystopian future/past, this new body of work presents a significant shift materially and conceptually.

In 2012, MacPhee began a fake fashion line (RELAX) out of clothing scavenged in cheap discount stores. The premise was total comfort in a fraught time. Cutting up sweat suits and other clothing, MacPhee sought out to create one piece outfits with multiple zippers, buttons, and other fabrics. The fashion line served as a catalyst for her latest body of work. The disassembled garments juxtaposed with the painted surfaces provide a personal identification between viewer and painting. The clothing embodies ideas of language, architecture, class and sensibility and brings a dark humor to the task.

In Hyperallergic [July 8, 2017] New York critic Stephen Maine writes:

“An extremely accomplished painter, MacPhee makes adjustments as she goes along — to her paintings; to her understanding of space; to the objects of her attention. Her facility and evident visual literacy shouldn’t be mistaken for pastiche. These paintings are cohesive, fully realized, and deeply personal.”

Medrie MacPhee was born in Edmonton, Alberta and has resided in New York City since 1978. She received a B.F.A. from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. MacPhee’s numerous awards include Anonymous Was a Woman (2016), American Academy of Arts and Letters Purchase Prize (2015), and a Guggenheim Fellowship in Fine Arts (2009). Her work is in various public collections including The National Gallery of Canada, the Metropolitan Museum, The Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. She was recently included in a group exhibition “99 Cents or Less” curated by Jens Hoffman at MOCAD Detroit from May 19 to August 6, 2017.

MacPhee is currently the Sherri Burt Hennessey Artist-In-Residence at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.

For more information, contact:
barbara@becontemporary.com