The works for The New FORBIDDEN exhibition at San Juan Island Museum of Art bloom from his studio in an array of upcycled waste materials; PET plastics, glass, aluminum, paper, and natural fiber.
The use of sustainable energy in the art-making processes is emphasized and underscored throughout the exhibition.
As the title The New FORBIDDEN suggests, this body of work investigates the ever-changing boundaries of what is deemed acceptable, or allowed, in society, and what is forbidden. Artworks address such topics as climate change, ethics, social acceptance, the concept of property, personal and communal boundaries, management of natural resources (including waste materials), and the use of sustainable energy.
Sponsors: The Honeywell Charitable Fund, Town of Friday Harbor, Printonyx, Browne’s Home Center, Harbor Rentals, and friends of Christison.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Kevin Christison is an American artist whose works of art have been acquired by numerous prestigious collections including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, and numerous other public and private collections. Christison is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. He studied Art History at the University of Oregon and received his BFA in Sculpture from the California College of the Arts in 1998.
Christison relocated his studio practice to Bangkok, Thailand in 2002, upon being awarded a Fulbright Scholarship in Sculpture. During his tenure as a Fulbright Scholar, he conducted lectures at universities throughout the Kingdom of Thailand and created a major exhibition of his work, which was held at the Art Centre Gallery of Silpakorn University in Bangkok, in early 2003.
Christison’s Studios have been based in Bangkok since 2002, though he travels and works extensively throughout Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean regions, and returns to the U.S. regularly for periods of time to work in the San Francisco Bay Area and on San Juan Island in Washington State.
In 2014, Christison took a hiatus from his full-time studio practice to embark upon a collaborative venture with the Soneva Group, an award-winning, and innovative luxury hospitality brand and industry leader in sustainable practices in architecture, design, and operations.
As Curator of Art and Glass for the Soneva Group, he conceived and developed a sustainability-driven art and design program at Soneva Fushi Resort, located on a very small and remote island in the Baa Atoll of the Maldives. The impetus for this program was to exact a means with which to upcycle waste bottle glass from the resort, and neighboring islands, into luxury lifestyle products and meaningful works of art. Parallel to the Soneva Glass program, he established an artist residency program and art exhibition spaces on the island.
Kevin Chistison's THE NEW FORBIDDEN will be on view from September 23 - December 5, 2022, in the Nichols Gallery and Atrium.
