Capturing the Intangible - Greg Miller and John “CRASH” Matos

As the last fleeting days of August sail past, we all experience that bittersweet nostalgia of summer’s end. Hot, humid walks on the beach, dripping slush cones melting in summer’s hazy heat, the familiar jingle of the ice cream truck. These sense memories are as familiar to us as the stripes and stars of the American flag, a combined collection of childhood memories  as well as specific images, smells and sounds. It’s amazing what the smell of the salty sea breeze can conjure, wet asphalt after a summer shower drying in mid-day sun. Though the memories may be different for each individual, the stories and narratives conjured create our collective history, and can define how we experience the world. New York based artists John “CRASH” Matos and Greg Miller present unique takes on this relationship between personal memory and collective history through their individual relationships with the language of the walls of the city streets, captured by each artist in their unique mediums.

Weathered, textured, raw surfaces that are a beautiful patchwork of materials define Miller’s new series of works (newly on view in NYC!) Here, the memories of the streets, as defined by our senses as well as memories, are made solid and tangible. Miller’s continued construction and deconstruction of the surface echoes the ephemerality of printed matter, and its specific, brief window into the record of our human history.

Internationally recognized for his bold, iconic murals and works on the street, John “CRASH” Matos’ spray paint on canvas paintings feature his classic imagery and slick style, always informed by the artist’s Bronx, New York roots. Through bold color and crisp lines, memory in the form of cultural pop references and well-loved cartoon characters interweaves with personal narrative, becoming a tangible, concrete presence that spans between instant recognition and abstraction.