California Dreaming Through the Prism of the iPhone

September 23 - October 23, 2021

 

California Dreaming Through the Prism of the iPhone: David Kramer

TAP Art Space is proud to present California Dreaming Through the Prism of the iPhone, a solo exhibition by New York City-based artist David Kramer. This is the first exhibition of David Kramer at TAP Art Space and runs from September 23rd to October 23rd, 2021.

Arguably the California Dream is dead. At the very least, California has been on life support for the past year or so. In fact, the whole planet has been suffering of late through a nagging pandemic and brutal climate change; a period of post-racial reckoning where so much optimism has been met with so little change. It has been a tough time all around. And yet, David Kramer observes, it has been a time of nonstop optimism on Instagram. A true lover of social media, Kramer culls both Instagram and Facebook for posts from friends and strangers and often lifts their beautiful sunsets or glamorous selfies as subject matter and backgrounds for his paintings. These images seem to go hand-in-hand with Kramer’s text, which usually consists of gas-lit affirmations or post-ironic observations that have been the real subject matter of his paintings for years.

For California Dreaming Through the Prism of the iPhone, Kramer has created paintings and a soft sculpture/bean bag chair. The painting styles range between somewhat representational, hard-edged work, to more loosely abstract color field. To Kramer, it is the text that carries the message, and the painted imagery lends a supportive juxtaposition to the composition.

As a chronic poster to his Instagram feed, friends often remark that Kramer’s life and career seem to be barreling ahead in a remarkable fashion. Never one to let a moment of self-deprecation pass, Kramer likes to tell people, “...Hey, I look good on Instagram!” “...Don’t necessarily believe everything you see there.”

David Kramer’s talent as a painter alongside his sharp wit has been recognized in the US as well as internationally, he recently collaborated with renowned fashion house Celine, he has received fellowships from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the New York Foundation for the Arts among others. Kramer’s work has been exhibited in major art fairs such as Art Basel and The Armory Show in New York and can be found in public collections such as Museum London (London, Ontario), Pompidou Museum - Musée National d’Art Moderne (Paris) and Lower East side Printshop (New York). TAP Art Space is proud and excited to welcome David Kramer back to Canada.

Press:

Canadian Art Forecast: Review. Written by Liam Mullen.