Ryan Sluggett
Bio
For Ryan Sluggett (b. 1981 Calgary, Alberta, Canada), everything starts with an exploratory drawing or notational depiction. With a “what if?” desire to experiment, he makes paintings and video animations that are constructed like sculptures, with a tactility and a sense of form that evince a deep fascination with how we negotiate the physical world. Depicting multiple perspectives and frenzied movement, his heavily layered works composed with paint and fabric in a gloriously ugly palette impart a wicked sense of humor. His fluid handling of both abstract and defined forms can be seen most clearly in his video work. The animations erupt with energy and enigma—delineated characters hold forth confidently and absurdly as objects morph seamlessly into figures and abstractions. Here Sluggett presents a new four-channel animation, rear-projected on a screen made of fabric stretched onto a frame, much like the constructs for his riotous paintings.
Gallery
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Object, Viewer and Their Respective Holes, 2012. Made in L.A. Installation view at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, June 2-September 2, 2012. Photo by Brian Forrest.
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Lucky, 2011. Acrylic, fabric dye, tempera, and oil on colored fabric. 112 x 62 in. (284.5 x 157.5 cm). Courtesy Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen.
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Drawing for a work in progress, 2011-12. Four-channel rear projection on fabric with fabric dye, acrylic, and oil stretched over wooden armature, color, sound. 240 x 96 in. (609.6 x 243.8 cm). Runtime not yet determined. Courtesy Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles.
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Drawing for a work in progress, 2011-12. Four-channel rear projection on fabric with fabric dye, acrylic, and oil stretched over wooden armature, color, sound. 240 x 96 in. (609.6 x 243.8 cm). Runtime not yet determined. Courtesy Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles.
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Still from Pitch, 2010-11. 96 x 84 x 180 in. (243.8 x 213.3 x 457.2 cm). Rear projected digital video; 2 color projections with sound. 4:00 min. Continuous loop. Courtesy Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles.
Ryan Sluggett
Ryan Sluggett. Still from Pitch, 2010-11. 96 x 84 x 180 in. (243.8 x 213.3 x 457.2 cm). Rear projected digital video; 2 color projections with sound. 4:00 min. Continuous loop. Courtesy Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles.