The Madness of Order, Nicolas Bohac At Fluxx
I Can Feel the World Happening Around Me, Fluxx Gallery
July 2012
Nicholas Bohac’s “Dwell”
July 20, 2012
Landscapes of visions, dreams, order, and chaos are all mixed up as a colorful soup in the work of Nicolas Bohac. The work delves into the lack of relationship between order and chaos and tries to find a system to contain the madness. Connections and divisions are drawn between elements of the the natural world, and grid-like superstructures that overlay or become the forms, thus transforming the landscapes into a vision of reality as humanity has altered it (or imagined it).
Installation shot at Fluxx
With the series of chaos drawings, above, Nicolas has allowed a wet medium to explore the pores of paper. Later after the soupy mess has dried the artist observes shapes within the mess and superimposes grids and forms. This to me, is a microcosmic look at how humanity has dealt with the incomprehensible elements of nature. We are not “okay” with disorder and feel the need to superimpose control on the uncontrollable, finding and reading form into the formless terrifying beauty of the earth.
Nicolas Bohac’s “Drift”
Nicolas’ artist statement for the show talks about wanting to represent or capture the feeling we experience upon waking from a dream. The piece above, simply entitled “Drift,” most accurately acknowledges this state between sleep and wakefulness. A boat slowly traverses a foggy and indistinct water-scape while an electrical storm fills the sky overhead. Forms within the canoe are insinuated but wrapped in colorful blankets obscuring their identity. It is a reminder of the chaos and lack of control we experience when we drift off to sleep. Maybe the unbound state of our unconscious minds could teach us more about the natural world we live in than science and reason ever could. Maybe it already has.
Nicolas Bohac is an artist living and working in San Francisco, California. His work will be on display at Fluxx in the East Village until just before the end of the month. For more on this artist visit http://www.nicholasbohac.com .
