Chromatope — Patel Arts

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Callum Schuster: Chromatope

Opening Reception: Thursday, December 7th 6-9pm Exhibition Dates: December 7 – January 14, 2018 Location: Project Studios (184 Munro St – rear)

Distilling the essence of a thing or a moment is something people have always done by documenting their events and environment for reflection and understanding. The periodic table, taxonomy, journals and some types of painting are a few examples of how we have taken the things in our life and categorized and encapsulated them for preservation, understanding, and meaning. When looking at the past with these records to refer to we have a chance to see where we came from and how we define our reality.

From minerals to plant and animal matter I have taken things from my environment in certain events and travels as a kind of souvenir. I collect, dry, disintegrate these souvenirs and turn them into powder to use as a pigment or dye. Once elements from my environment are turned to a resin-like paint the essence of the material is preserved. From solid to liquid back to solid, the substance becomes a reflection of what it once was. The colour doesn’t always reflect the event or our immediate understanding of the material or memory of it but these monochromes are a way of capturing and documenting an event and seeing it as a single colour.

Callum Schuster’s work offers an ongoing investigation into our perception of the world around us. Schuster foregrounds the relationship between imaginary, 2D and 3D spaces as a way of exploring the psychology of space and its effect on our wellbeing. Rather than creating a visual escape for the viewer, the aim is to engender self-reflexive environments or experiences. A blending of alchemy and meditation become a focus in a pursuit of praxis, an application of a theory to a practice.

Schuster graduated from OCADU's Drawing and Painting program in 2011. His work has been exhibited in a number of solo and group exhibitions, including Palindrome Dome Metronome Home at O'Born Contemporary (Toronto), More Than Two (curated by Micah Lexier) at The Power Plant (Toronto), an off-site exhibition at the Havana Biennale, as well as public installations for the City of Toronto's Nuit Blanche and WayHome Music and Arts Festival.