“About Thirteen Hundred People, About One Hundred Rocks, and Thirty More People” Drawings and sculpture by Russell Etchen

“About Thirteen Hundred People, About One Hundred Rocks, and Thirty More People”

Drawings and sculpture by Russell Etchen

Friday, September 19, 2014
Test Tube at Tillery Park
801 Tillery Street, Austin, TX USA

So yeah, when someone draws little heads, I kinda think, uh, not much of it initially. I went to see what was up with this show anyway. Glasstire put this show in their top five for the week so I was thinking there would be three hundred or so people there. I was glad when there was not. My very old nose and eyes can only take so many crooked hats, fat laces and weird hipster smells. 

The Test Tube space is about 8X16’, I think. There were not a ton of pieces on view but that had nothing to do with the space. I found a perfect amount and variety of works. The space is well constructed but small. I had no clue what the noise was coming from inside the space but there was some. The hanging paper heads threw me off but what really got me were the drawings. I mean, really, I liked these. They were made with care and love and color. They were also presented in real frames with real glass and real beveled edge cut matte boards, which in Austin seems hard to come by these days.

Again, I was not expecting to be into these. I prefer big weird paintings that look like nothing real and also look completely obsessed over but I was happy to find real art in these works. Having to seek the art in these works made me happy when I found it. Me inaccurately thinking art would not be in these works taught me something important; I am often a dumb ass about a great many things.

Art is weird. Artists are bat-shit crazies. I think they have to be. They also have to be dedicated and endure the many piles of crap life throws at them. I think Austin is blessed to have Russell here. He is determined and honest and works hard.