Jeremy Dean: “Are we coming apart - or are we coming together”

Alongside the rest of the nation, artists individually and collectively struggle to come to terms with what a Donald Trump presidency means. In his finely timed exhibit at Galerie 103, Jeremy Dean, who recently traded East Coast for the sunny West Coast of Kauai (Kekaha), chimes in.

He examines the physical and conceptual aspects of a deconstructed and reconstructed American flag.

Perceiving art as a process of engaging material, ideas, and the world, Dean has been unraveling the American flag string by string for the past several years. As the growing social, political, and economic polarization has unfolded, culminating in the recent election, the work seems to become even more life-like.

“It is unclear to me whether we are coming apart or coming together. These pieces reflect the state of the union, and attempt to unweave national myths, ideologies and perceptions,” he states.

The most engaging part of this exhibit is Dean’s physical presence at the gallery: every Wednesday and Saturday over the course of the next few weeks and months, Dean is unraveling the flag, one thread at the time. Part action, part protest – but all process – this public performance is a way to involve the viewer in the unfolding intentionality of this gesture, allowing a full understanding of this work as its meaning is unwoven and rewoven over time.

Honolulu sculptor and installation artist Eli Baxter, who is presented in this two artist exhibit, parallels Dean’s approach.

By deconstructing and re-imagining a variety of discarded materials, two artists challenge conventions, offering their unique visions in a physical and conceptual way.