Over the Influence is pleased to present Go Figure, a group exhibition curated by New York-based artist Todd James. Ffeaturing new works by March Avery, Heather Benjamin, Sean Cavanaugh, Timothy Curtis, Daze, Jesse Edwards, Malie Huffman, Todd James, George Lowrey, Geoff McFetridge, and Devin Troy Strother.
In recent years a major shift back towards representational art has introduced a new cohort of young figurative painters whose work is garnering increasing attention. James’s selection aims to show a diverse microcosm of figuration today, cutting through artificial distinctions of age, style, and background and celebrating common ground. Born into a family of artists, March Avery began making her own work daily by age two, and went on to evolve an original style emerging from direct observation of the visual world. Her son, Sean Cavanaugh, is also a painter whose watercolor images have been exhibited internationally. James also cites the importance of emerging and non-traditional artists with works by Heather Benjamin, a recognized illustrator of underground zines, Malie Huffman, George Lowrey, and Geoff McFetridge, all young figurative artists emerging from the world of illustration. Also included are NYC artist and icon Daze—a Basquiat contemporary whose work is included in many museum collections—and other celebrated contemporary artists who started their careers in the world of graffiti: Timothy Curtis, Jesse Edwards, and Devin Troy Strother. Finally, the exhibition includes a new series of nudes by James, works which highlight the artist’s tremendous sense of play in always re-imagining the human form. With works spanning the spectrum from established figuration to underground illustration, Go Figure insists on the interconnectedness of inspiration, and indeed on the interconnectedness of us all.
