"Armadillo" | Carl Clark and Mike Harris Jr. at Interact Gallery
We are thrilled to announce the upcoming opening of Armadillo, an exhibition featuring landscape paintings by Carl Clark and Mike Harris, Jr.
Opens May 11, 2024
Carl Clark and Mike Harris, Jr. share an interest in rolling hills, expansive skies, and vigorous swaths of color. Both use painting to commune with the environment. They treat their subjects gently: bees rest in psychedelic swirls of pink, orange, and yellow; little palm trees line the edges of dark and peaceful lagoons. One imagines wandering these places, cloaked in tangerine and cerulean hues, seeing things as the artists do.
Clark’s beautifully stark landscapes are known for boundless, wide-open skies. He applies pigment in columns and rows, creating flat patchworks of color. Both wistful and matter of fact, the paintings whisk us away to shorelines, mountains, pastures, seas. “I like the scenery,” he says. Working with his advocate, Joli Grostephan, Clark sources reference images from calendars and the internet, infusing his subjects with mystery and charm.
Harris’s work is deeply concerned with pollinators. In his acrylic and watercolor paintings, pinks, oranges and greens compose vibrating skies; worker bees pollinate in effervescent swirls of color; and rolling hills are laced with luminous rows of corn. He hopes that his paintings encourage viewers to contemplate the interconnectedness of bees and humans, as well as rural and urban environments. “We have to work together to get what we need,” he says.
Both artists have been devoted to their current subjects for years (Clark 8, Harris 16) and have singular archives to prove it. Their steadfast routines and prolific bodies of work signal a commitment to something greater that may be, like the show’s title, ineffable. Armadillo puts words to the sublime. When asked why he’s an artist, Harris says, “Maybe because I fit into the artist community.” Clark says, “It’s somethin’ to do.”
EXHIBITION DETAILS
When | May 11 – June 15, 2024
Where | Open by appointment at Interact Gallery, 755 Prior Avenue N., St. Paul, MN 55104. (Not to be confused with Interact Center.)
Opening Reception | Saturday, May 11, 4 - 6 p.m. Free and open to the public (no appointment necessary).
Visit in person | Make an appointment at calendly.com/interact-gallery or send us an email at gallery@interactcenter.com.
COVID-10 SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
At this time, masks are optional at Interact Gallery.
ACCESSIBILITY
Please visit this page for more comprehensive information. Interact strives to be a welcoming and accessible place for all visitors. If there is something we can do to make it easier to visit us, please contact us at gallery@interactcenter.com. We welcome all suggestions and requests.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
CARL CLARK (above, left) has presented work in galleries throughout the Twin Cities, including The White Page, Artspace Jackson Flats, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, HGA Architects & Engineers, and Interact Gallery. His work is collected both nationally and abroad. In 2021, he presented work in Cordially Invited at MAKE Studio (Baltimore) and in WILD GOOSE, a two-person online exhibition with New York-based artist Jack Arthur Wood Jr. He has practiced at Interact since 2016.
MIKE HARRIS JR. (above, right) has presented work in exhibitions at The White Page, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Minneapolis Institute of Art, and Interact Gallery. In 2018, he received an Emerging Artist grant from VSA Minnesota, and in 2022, he presented a solo display at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Harris collaborated with New York-based accessories label KARA in 2020 to develop imagery for the release of their Spring 2021 capsule collection. He has practiced at Interact since 2010.
Images: Above, left: Carl Clark, Desert Storm, 2023, acrylic on paper, 24 x 18 inches. Above, right: Mike Harris Jr., Spelling Bee, 2015, acrylic on paper, 24 x 18 inches.
Image descriptions: Top, left: a landscape painting of a bright orange field with horizontal strips of green. The sky is layered with dark purple, orange, yellow, and pink. There are black spots throughout the foreground and along the horizon. Top, right: A painting of a bumblebee close up, on a bright yellow surface. The bee is surrounded by green, purple, and orange brushstrokes. Bottom, left: A photo of Carl Clark leaning over some of his paintings as he signs them. Dozens of his paintings are sprawled out on the table. Clark identifies as a Black man. He wears a grey, brown, and black jacket and a grey striped beanie. Bottom, right: A photo of Mike Harris Jr. at Interact Gallery. Dozens of his paintings are on the table in front of him. He sits in a chair, looking at them, smiling. Harris identifies as a white man. He wears a turquoise zip up, green bandana, and safety glasses.