Ben Gocker - Scaredy Cat City - P.P.O.W.

Ben Gocker at the opening of Scaredy Cat City at P.P.O.W. Gallery

I was going to write a whole thing but I was having trouble getting it right so I’ll do this as simply as possible:

I sincerely believe Ben Gocker is a genius, in the truest sense of the word. He’s a tireless polymath with gobs of talent, a unique aesthetic, and a psychotic work ethic.  His work is born from a sincere and urgent desire to connect with the world via whatever media he chooses; be it poetry, fiction, comics, performance, sculpture, assemblage, painting, etc.  I have followed Ben’s incredible output for many years and it has been a distinct pleasure to watch his work change and grow.

Scaredy Cat City represents an already-brilliant young artist’s declarative maturation, a watershed moment in the career of an artist with limitless potential.  It Is a beautiful, busy, wildly thrilling collection of work. It could appear at first glance deceptively simple, but when explored it is rich with a nuanced, joyous, chaotic beauty. The complexity of the compositions speaks to the thoughtful intention behind their painstaking construction.  The work contains elements of all the media listed above, cobbling them into a new and singular visual language. The work is narrative, figurative, poetic, rhythmic, like a map or hieroglyphics from a world that Ben alone can see, and which he is trying desperately to share.

Please, if you care about art, and if you have the chance, go and see this show while it is up.

P.P.O.W. press release, info etc can be found HERE. 

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