UNDERCURRENT

A JURIED exhibition of contemporary art IN central TExas
April 22 - JUne 3, 2024

Contracommon is proud to present Undercurrent, a juried regional exhibition of artists working in any media within a 100 mile radius of our space. The exhibition will be on view in the gallery from April 22nd through June 3rd, 2024. Undercurrent will feature a reception on May 4th from 4 – 7pm, including a discussion with a selection of the artists and jurors.

Leading up to Undercurrent, Contracommon artists invited prominent members of the local art community to serve as jurors for the exhibition: Leah Bury, Mónica Ceniceros, Jules Buck Jones, and Richard Samuel. Jury members have founded festivals, organizations, and galleries in Central Texas and provide diverse perspectives around the emerging art scene. 

After reviewing applications from artists throughout the state, the jury ultimately selected thirteen participants: Angel Moreno, Chantal Lesley, Daniela Oliver, Drew Carman, Erin Carle, Hailey Gearo, Jakin Cordova, Kirsten Lofgren, Lisa Alley, Malti Lee, Ryan Sandison Montgomery, Sara Kate Hannon, and Sydney Guzman.

Through unconventional, sometimes confounding compositions and environments, these artists grapple with self-discovery and offer fresh perspectives on shared experiences. Few of the works included in this exhibition are fully abstract, but even the most representational of them is more concerned with transmitting an essence of lived experience, a feeling, than an exact record of one event, person or place. These artists are picking apart elements of our world–whether from the intimate scale of their lives or the global stage–displaying them on an off-kilter psychological plane that insists the viewer place themselves within it, either in the position of a subject or simply getting lost in the disorienting landscape presented. 

ANGEL MORENO

CHANTAL LESLEY

DANIELA OLIVER

DREW CARMAN

ERIN CARLE

HAILEY GEARO

Jakin Cordova

Kirsten Lofgren

lisa alley

malti lee

Ryan Sandison Montgomery

Sara Kate Hannon

Sydney Guzman

JURY PANEL

Leah Bury

Leah Bury is a multimedia creative based out of Austin, Texas. Her fascination and appreciation for many different creative mediums has led her to embrace multimedia work, and she is always looking to blend various mediums to tell a unique story. Her favorite mediums include photography (film and digital), scanography, poetry, digital illustration, and graphic design. She is also a curator and event producer and co-founder of Slow Fashion Festival, and to date has produced nearly a dozen pop-up art galleries exploring various themes and featuring many local artists.

MÓNICA CENICEROS

Mónica is the Founder, CEO, lead curator and owner of atxGALS collective and The Cathedral. She grew up in Monterrey, México, where she absorbed the colorful culture that is reflected in all of her work today. After university, Mónica rented her first art studio in East Austin to keep her passion for art alive, allowing her to tap into the local art scene and meet many of the artists she works with today.

@atxgals is a local all-women and nonbionary artist collective whose mission is to elevate and create more exposure for women artists through unique art exhibitions. After 2+ successful years of art pop-us around Austin, they opened their own gallery space: The Cathedral, a gorgeous 1930's refurbished church turned into a boutique art gallery and event space in East Austin.

JULES BUCK JONES

Jules Buck Jones creates energetic paintings and drawings of different plant and animal imagery often referencing deep time or synchronicities found in nature.

He is a founding member of the collective non-profit, MASS Gallery and the art / science collective Animal Facts Club, both located in Austin TX. Jules has participated in art residencies including Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Vermont Studio Center, Arrowmont School of Art and Craft, The Lighthouse Works, and The Everglades National Park. Jules currently teaches drawing at TX State University in San Marcos, TX, and is head curator at projectART's ARTSPACE in Wimberley, TX.

richard samuel

With an insatiable appetite for creating, Richard Samuel is an artist and Founder of RichesArt Gallery. Samuel creates vivid, eclectic, and realistic paintings adorned on the walls of private collectors around the world. As the owner of a Black-owned gallery in Austin, Texas, Samuel is committed to diversifying Austin’s art scene and bringing work from underrepresented communities to the forefront.