SEVEN-ISH | THE BOILER

SERIOUSLY FUNNY
Opening Reception: April 29, 6-9pm
April 22 - May 22, 2016
191 North 14th Street

We are pleased to announce the fifth edition of SEVEN in Brooklyn, a collaborative exhibition at The BOILER including seven galleries, each presenting work by one artist. The theme of SEVEN-ish, Seriously Funny, is humor in art and taking humor seriously. The exhibition will run from April 29th through May 22nd, 2016, with an opening reception on Friday, April 29th, 6–9pm. There will be a live performance during the opening reception at 8pm by special guest Sean J. Patrick Carney of Bruce High Quality Foundation University.

First you laugh. Then you wonder why. This is the one-two punch of humor in art today, where laughter is nervous but never cheap, and comic turns are but the gateway to a world of doubt. Indeed, funny art comes so loaded with piercing ironies, sudden surrealities, and deadpan expressions of horror or grief that we cannot be sure if it is even okay to laugh.

—Linda Yablonsky

It is OK to laugh.

Remember, the jester was the only one who could speak hard truths to the king. But lately the courtiers of art have been very serious. There seems to be a critical consensus that humor in art does not get you very far. The extraordinary recent show of Fischli and Weiss at the Guggenheim delivered major existential truths, and yet was mostly considered merely funny. Like John Oliver’s hilarious essays about real issues that are often deeper and better researched than standard news broadcasts, the veil of humor enveloping reality can be employed to stunning effects. It can deliver wisdom and revelation. For many artists the lure of humor, irony, satire, goofiness, and sarcasm is irresistible.

SEVEN-ish will present the jokers, the tricksters, the comedians, the cartoonists, and the just very, very funny serious artists.

Even the gods love jokes.
– Plato

If I had no sense of humor, I would long ago have committed suicide.
– Mahatma Gandhi

One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor.
– George Carlin

Launched in Miami in 2010 as an art fair alternative by seven galleries from New York and London, SEVEN is a unique initiative committed to presenting artworks on their own terms and providing an intimate, personal way to engage the viewer. An emphasis on cooperation rather than competition is a founding principle of SEVEN that puts the art viewing experience ahead of other considerations. Since its inception, SEVEN has evolved by inviting new galleries and guests in both independent and institutional locations. Participating galleries in this edition of SEVEN are Anton Kern Gallery,Fredericks & Freiser, Greene Naftali, PIEROGI, Postmasters, P•P•O•W,and Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, with a live performance at the opening reception by special guest Sean J. Patrick Carney of Bruce High Quality Foundation and University. This edition of SEVEN is organized by PIEROGI and Postmasters.

Entry to SEVEN is free. The opening reception is Friday, April 29th from 6 – 9 pm, with a live performance at 8pm.

seven-miami.com