Damien Echols
Some of you may know Damien Echols as one of the West Memphis Three, a group of teenagers wrongfully accused of murder in the early 90s. Echols himself had been on death row, and all three of them were in prison for 18 years and 78 days before being exonerated and freed. Since his release, Echols has been exhibiting his impeccably crafted occult artwork, the making of which, he stated, "...is the same as a practicing Catholic would use a rosary, or a Muslim would use a prayer rug. Things that are set apart from daily life ... sacred objects." It's work that is deeply meditative both in its creation and in its viewing.
If you're lucky enough to be near NYC, then you won't want to miss "777," his two-person show with Jen DeNike opening this weekend at Participant, Inc. The exhibition explores the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, and incorporates his drawings and DeNike's videos in seven installations that are mapped throughout the space to manifest seven of the ten sephirot. Full details:
Jen DeNike and Damien Echols, 777
September 10 – October 15, 2017
Opening Reception, Sunday, September 10, 7-9pm
“I believe in magick, I believe in you”
–Jen DeNike
“Magicians have catalogued and explored ten different levels of what is known as
reality, and then produced a map of this terrain. That map now goes by the name of
the Tree of Life. Magicians also studied and mapped out the path through these
levels of reality that divine energy takes as it manifests on the physical plane,
and that path has been configured to have the numerological value of 777.”
–Damien Echols
PARTICIPANT INC is pleased to present 777, a two person exhibition by New York-based artists Jen DeNike and Damien Echols. Seven discreet site-specific installations evolved and are mapped according to the Tree of Life drawing by Echols, including individual artworks by each artist as well as collaborative,
interactive, and time-based work. Seven vinyl vector drawings of red sigils derived from this drawing float on the walls, connecting the passage through the Tree of Life realms of Kether, Binah, Chochma, Geburah, Chesed, Hod, and Netzach. Central to the exhibition is a large-scale handmade tent, which the artists will inhabit for one-on-one encounters with the tarot. As well, a collection of collaged books from the their library will be available for study inside. A series by DeNike of silent video works form two pillars, a gateway of initiation outside the tent, depicting her and Echols in meditative states. A
third single-channel video features Participant Director Lia Gangitano walking in and out of frame repeatedly in a ritual act of cyclic motion – she becomes the Chariot Card in the tarot, moving not in a direct line but rather a circular motion in time.
Sounds truly transcendent.
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