 Hidden
Citizens by Chris Mars
On display in the Ground Floor Gallery from April 17 through July 18,
2004
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Deeply impacted as a child by his older brother’s mental illness,
Chris Mars’s work explores the meaning of monster. As Mars visited
his schizophrenic brother throughout years of treatment in institutions,
he began to question who the real monsters were. As he met other institutionalized
patients and caregivers, he learned those who play the role of caregiver
can be neglecting and exploitative, while those who society perceives
as monsters can be gentle and compassionate. Mars points out that the
word “monster” can be used to mean “different,” as
well as “evil” which he sees as a misleading sharing of meaning.
He uses the term Perceived Monster to describe misfits, the physically
deformed, and those who are mentally on a plane other than the majority.
Real Monsters are those people who are cruel, oppressive or dehumanizing
to others.
Within his paintings, Mars creates worlds that transcend the shallowness
of popular culture and bring into question exceptions and judgments.
Beauty goes beyond form. Mars employs a highly detailed surreal style
used to draw the viewer into his world. He remarks: “I use these
conventional vehicles to specifically lure the viewer into my world,
which is a direct product of the World, where Angels can be mistaken
for Monsters, and actual Monsters for heroes or kings.”
Mars’s work has been the subject of solo exhibitions at galleries
nationwide including Fuse Gallery, New York; Dead Horse Gallery, Lakewood,
Ohio; Swizzle Gallery, Toronto, Canada; La Luz de Jesus Gallery, and
Los Angeles, California. Pieces of Mars’s are held in the permanent
collections of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Minnesota History
Museum. He has been the subject of several articles and essays, including
most recently, a feature article in the November / December 2003 issue
of Juxtapoze magazine.
A reception will be held on Saturday, April 24, 2004 from 7-9:30 p.m.
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