Billy Gerard Frank’s newest work, “Eulogies”—which explores his previous and a fancy relationship along with his father—will probably be on show by August 13 at Elizabeth Moss Galleries in Portland, Maine. Listed here are excerpts from Eric Russell’s evaluate, “Impressed by journey house to Grenada, rising artwork world star [Billy Gerard Frank] unpacks his suitcase in Portland,” for the Portland Press Herald. [Many thanks to Peter Jordens for bringing this item to our attention.]
Multimedia artist and filmmaker Billy Gerard Frank hadn’t returned to his house nation, the Caribbean island nation of Grenada, in a long time.
He left as a young person after rising estranged from a area of the world the place residing as a homosexual particular person meant ostracization, or worse. Grenada nonetheless has so-called buggery legal guidelines, which prohibit sexual contact between two males.
Frank revisited for the primary time 5 years in the past, after the demise of his father, and the long-awaited return was each cathartic and creatively inspirational. “I discovered this suitcase he had that was full of letters and mementos and maps,” he stated. “That form of grew to become the impetus to mine his life and likewise mine my life alongside his.”
The outcome was a sequence of labor that will probably be on show, starting this month and working by mid-August, at Elizabeth Moss Galleries on Fore Road in Portland. His solo exhibit, “Eulogies,” features a movie set up, set principally in Grenada, accompanied by multimedia collage canvases, mixed-media pictures and sculpture. The sequence explores themes of exile, colonialism and sexuality, all of them private to the artist. [. . .]
Frank has at all times drawn from his personal life for inspiration, however by no means extra in order that in his present sequence, “Eulogies.”
One of many issues he realized in studying about his father and his personal upbringing is how a lot he was uncovered to artwork, albeit in non-traditional methods.
“My dad, who was primarily a boatbuilder, was an unimaginable carpenter. He had a deep appreciation for aesthetic,” Frank stated. “He was an artist himself, simply not by title. Anytime he constructed one thing, he knew it needed to be lovely.”
Frank’s mom had related sensibilities. She labored as a seamstress, typically even for native theater corporations in Grenada. [. . .]
BREAKING BARRIERS
Frank’s exhibit in Portland isn’t a conventional paintings-on-the-wall presentation.
The centerpiece is a 40-minute movie, “2nd Eulogy: Thoughts The Hole,” that can play on a single display screen inside Moss Galleries, complemented by different items, together with photographic stills from the movie, a hand-stitched canvas collage and a sculpture.
The movie, Frank stated, facilities on Nelson, a fisherman, whose homosexual son, James, comes of age in a altering island panorama. The story is fictional, however James’ story mirrors Frank’s personal. [. . .]
For full article, see https://www.pressherald.com/2022/07/03/inspired-by-trip-home-to-grenada-rising-art-world-star-with-maine-ties-unpacks-his-suitcase-in-portland
The exhibition:
Eulogies: Billy Gerard Frank
July 8 – August 13, 2022
Elizabeth Moss Galleries, 100 Fore Road, Suite B, Portland, ME 04101
See extra at https://www.elizabethmossgalleries.com/exhibitions/63-billy-gerard-frank-eulogies/works
[Shown above: SECOND EULOGY: MIND THE GAP (ENTRADA: AT THE RIVER AND OCEAN NO.1) 2019.]