Julie Malen: "Neo Air"

DENVER, March 29, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design (RMCAD) presents a special exhibition featuring distinguished Richmond, Va.-based artist Julie Malen. Neo Air will take place in the Philip J. Steele's West Gallery on RMCAD's campus. The exhibition will run from May 25 – July 16, 2017. Malen's opening reception will be held in conjunction with Katie Torn's An Ocean Without Water exhibition in the Philip J. Steele's East Gallery. The exhibitions will be the first of the Gallery's yearlong visiting artist gallery series. 

Julie Malen: Neo Air
Presented by Philip J. Steele Gallery at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design
Curated by Rick Dailey   

Dates: May 25 – July 16, 2017
Reception: Thursday, May 25, 2017 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Philip J. Steele Gallery
1600 Pierce Street
Denver, CO 80214

About the Exhibition
The sculptural works in NEO AIR play with material translation, scale and inverted spaces to enhance the feeling of gravity, displacement and stillness. Subjects include: soft sculptures of rock formations; a ceramic cast of Malen's entire body; and underwater video of Olympic divers. The collection of dynamic figurative works and immersive video installation strategically utilize formal devices of surface, material and composition to enhance the plasticity of the surrounding architecture. NEO AIR investigates the illusion of stillness by contemplating the cyclical nature of cultural debris from our past that is reimagined and introduced in our present. The world that we experience is constantly on the move and at any given moment reflects temporary interaction with rapid and gradual timescales. "In this series of encounters, we find comfort in the illusion of stillness," says Malen. "The work suggests that our perception of space is, in fact, an endless and unknowable layering of various surfaces, life forms, and timescales."

About the Artist
Julie Malen holds an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University (2014) and a BA from Kansas City Art Institute (2007). Malen collages photographs with video, sculpture and cultural debris in her installations to create the visual sensation of moving through many places at once. Her work has been exhibited nationally, including recent features at Vox Populi Gallery in Philadelphia, Pa.; and the Urban Institute for Contemporary Art in Grand Rapids, Mich. In addition to her studio practice, Malen teaches visual art courses at VCUarts, in Richmond, Va. She has taught at several national art institutions including Kansas City Art Institute in Kansas City, Mo. and Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, Pa. where she was also an Artist in Residence for the 2015-16 academic year. Malen has participated in numerous other artist residencies including Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, Colo.; Mildred's Lane in Narrowsburg, N.Y.; the Charlotte Street Foundation's Urban Culture Project in Kansas City, Mo.; and the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vt.

Attendance
All RMCAD Gallery exhibitions are free and open to the public.

About the Gallery
The Philip J. Steele Gallery is the largest dedicated gallery space on RMCAD's campus. The Gallery exhibits student, alumni and faculty work in addition to nationally and internationally renowned visiting artist, scholars and designers. The Gallery mission is to create a space for dialogue, using contemporary art as a vehicle for critical discourse. Gallery hours are Monday – Saturday, 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

About Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design
A premier arts school in the Denver area, Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design is an innovative, rigorous, and community-oriented global learning environment that inspires passion for critical thinking and prepares learners to be forces of change in the creative industries, our communities, and the world. Find more information at www.RMCAD.edu or by calling 800.888.ARTS.  

MEDIA CONTACT:
Rick Dailey
[email protected]
303-753-6046 ext. 22753

SOURCE Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design