The formally London based artist Zoobs, has moved to New York to oversee his first solo show, both in the US and, more specifically in New York. His partner and curator in this endeavor, Ivy Brown, has shown his work in her gallery in SoHo and elsewhere.The show is aptly named: Consolidate the Experience seems like just that; an effort to fit all of Zoobs' various works into one space. Brown pulls it off, showcasing works that highlight the eclectic manner and hectic nature of Zoobs' works, while managing to condense it into the smallish space of the gallery / loft / studio. Apollinair wrote of English art: “An art whose candor is captivating and whose good humor rejoices the heart” and this show demonstrates cheeky respect for the work upon whose shoulders it stands, as well as to the subject.
Zoobs works broadly in the medium of photography, or one could broadly classify Zoobs as a photographer. His work is mostly mixed media, on top of some portraits he took, then assembled into frames. Its interesting - very London, very hip. The neon glow of the David Bowie lightbox (assembled to commemorate Bowie's 60th) placed on a wall to itself speaks to the pop art sensibility that permeates throughout the exhibit. However its a pop art and design that is uniquely British, paint splattered over images of Prince Charles on one side and Madonna on the other In Madonna we Trust. That's not to say there is nothing here for an American audience, on the contrary. It will be interesting to see how NYC reacts to this stranger in their space, with it's own axiom.
Review by John Hutt
Photographs by Ali Rajabi