Form as Context

Traditionally, ‘form’ refers to the elements of an artwork that are often the first viewers see, such as colors, lines, shapes, and materials that together create a singular experience. During the 1960s, American art critic Clement Greenberg famously focused on form—in particular, the flatness and optical elements of an artwork—as integral to determining artistic value. Though, this narrow principle removed form from a vital component that allows a deeper definition of visual work: context.

‘Context’ can be defined as circumstances that are easy to grasp and assess that surround and structure the atmosphere for an idea, event, or object to emerge. Form is often seen as distinct from context and this exhibition intends to demonstrate that they cannot be so easily separated, that form itself can be considered a context.

On display are works by an international mix of emerging and established artists including Matthew Chernoff, Federico Colletta, Adrian Doura, Jose L. Garcia, Nick Gilmore, Derek Hunter, Jessie Laino, Hyland Mather (thelostobject), Rodwas, Pabli Stein. The exhibition has been separated into five provisional contexts: Environment, Site/Place, Authorship, History, and Abstract. Each of these contexts is meant to add traction to the colors, lines, shapes, and materials artists use to create their work; through this process, we can show how form and context intertwine. This exhibition was organized by Barbara Bollini Roca, MFA in Curatorial Practice candidate.