New Exhibit at the Everson in Syracuse

WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY)

The Everson Brings Experimental Artist Raymon Elozua to Syracuse

The Everson Museum of Art enthusiastically announces Raymon Elozua: Structure/Dissonance, a new exhibition opening September 10, 2022. Celebrating Elozua’s first major museum exhibition since his 2003 retrospective at the Mint Museum, Structure/Dissonance focuses on three conceptual bodies of work that explore the combined physical properties of three elemental materials: ceramic, glass, and steel.

Based in New York City and the Catskill mountains, Raymon Elozua first came to prominence in the 1970s through detailed trompe l’oeil sculptures of decaying rust belt landscapes. Spanning nearly five decades of work Structure/Dissonance contextualizes Elozua’s vital sculptures within his intellectual landscape and research projects that are directly linked to his artistic output.

Elozua’s intention with much of his work lies in uncovering the hidden cultural meanings attached to his chosen materials. This pursuit has led to the obsessive collecting of esoteric objects like restaurant stove burners and rusted enamel cookware, as well as photographs and ephemera related to topics as varied as labor history and decaying “borscht belt” resorts.

“Raymon Elozua’ work shifts from a collection of elegiac sculptures and photographs of decline and decay to living performances—still life sculptural explosions—transformed by the introduction of blown glass, signifying hope, play, and resilience,” said Garth Johnson, the Everson’s Paul Phillips and Sharon Sullivan Curator of Ceramics.

Elozua credits being the son of immigrants who made their way to America after World War II for his innovative approach. “Immigrants look at the world from the outside and have to figure out how to fit into it,” said Elozua. “They see things from the outside in a way insiders can’t. This mentality has helped me to continuously push boundaries and advance the technology of ceramics through the use of steel.”

Raymon Elozua: Structure/Dissonance will be on view from Saturday, September 10, through December 31, 2022. An opening reception event will be held on Friday, September 9, to provide an exclusive first look at the exhibition. During the evening Elozua will partake in a one-on-one conversation with Ceramics Curator Garth Johnson in the Everson’s Hosmer Auditorium. The reception is free for members and $15 for non-members. Visit everson.org/fallopening for details.

Elozua is also this year’s featured guest for Syracuse University’s College of Visual & Performing Arts Visiting Artist Lecture Series on Thursday, September 8, from 6-8pm in the Everson’s Hosmer Auditorium. This event is free and open to the public. Learn more at everson.org/sulectureseries.

For media inquiries, contact Kristin Sheehan at (646) 421-0291 or ksheehan@everson.org.

About the Everson Museum of Art

The Everson is a museum of firsts. It was the first museum to dedicate itself to the collection of American art, to create a permanent collection of ceramics, to collect video art, to create a docent program, and to hire the now internationally-known architect I.M. Pei to design its building, a sculptural work of art in its own right. Located in Syracuse, NY, the Everson is home to over 10,000 works of art: American paintings, sculpture, drawings, video, graphics and one of the largest holdings of international ceramics in the nation. Visit everson.org to learn more.

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