Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Is the point of art to have a point?

OK, I know artists can get a little weird, and I know they don't expect us pedestrian types to "get" their work all the time, but shouldn't they have at least one or two themes they explore at a time? According to the Artpace Web site, local artist Katie Pell is all over the map.

Through drawing, ceramics, performance projects, and comic books, Katie Pell irreverently explores personal and cultural identity, as well as the potential for greatness in everyone. Pell has completed two bodies of work focusing on the dormant fame in each of us. The pastel drawings show ordinary people Mick Jaggar-a-fied, while the comic book humorously tells of the fantastic effect of a Mick apparition on the otherwise humdrum life of a teenager. A more recent series portrays a parallel universe in which women use their disposable income to customize domestic appliances with the competitive zeal of male car fanatics. In these projects, and others, Pell delves into the role of fate and circumstance in creating a disconnect between how we appear and who we would like to become.

I could be wrong, but I think Pell needs a little focus.

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