Scott Groeniger at Open Source Gallery

Scott Groeniger (faculty) Solo Exhibition at
Open Source Gallery
255 17th street
Brooklyn, NY

Relish, Savor, Enjoy (Create Flavors For a Happy Life)

March 27 - April 26
Opening Saturday March 28, 7pm - 10pm






Using textures and abstractions photographed in China, Scott Groeniger is examining the present culture and lifestyle of the ancient cradle of Chinese civilization which is Shanxi Province and the current cultural and political cradle which is Beijing. Shanxi Province has a deep and rich cultural history that is thousands of years old. Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi Province, has recently emerged as a major industrial city, fueling the growth of China with much needed energy resources. Taiyuan City is a leader in terms of the world’s worst air quality which is mostly caused by emissions from coal burning electricity plants and steel production facilities. Additionally, Taiyuan has one of the highest ratios of actual to potential desert on earth and as a result, is very quietly running out of water. With a small population of 3.5 million, Taiyuan is on the verge of becoming one of China’s most hushed eco-disasters. Despite this rather grim future tense, Taiyuan continues to build and expand.

With the 2008 Olympics finally behind us, Beijing has emerged as a post-modern major international city in the global arena. Working with photographic images from both of these unique locations in China Groeniger is combining textures and surfaces which reflect everyday life in China with images gathered from the many important cultural, archeological and historical sites, temples, art museums, and ancient cities around Shanxi Province and Beijing. The entire body of images weave together images of fragments and pieces from the present and the past found in these two extraordinary, historically significant places in China. The entire body of work ultimately suggests a rich cultural past overlaid on a future which is both full of challenges and hope as China transitions into an international super power.