Episode #231: Josiah McElheny explores the relationship between abstraction and the body as he makes "Projection Painting 1" (2015). "We're projecting lost footage or abandoned footage by the great filmmaker Maya Deren," says McElheny, who further abstracts Deren's images by filming the footage "from the worst seats." McElheny's distorted footage is then projected once more onto a framed fractured landscape in another round of abstraction to create the final painting. Working with cinematographer Martina Radwan at a photography studio in Manhattan, McElheny found that utilizing unedited footage "felt more malleable" than when he attempted to work with completed narrative films. The finished "Projection Painting" was shown in a continuous loop during McElheny's Fall 2015 solo show at Andrea Rosen Gallery in New York City.

Josiah McElheny creates finely crafted, handmade glass objects that he combines with photographs, text, and museological displays to evoke notions of meaning and memory. McElheny's work takes as its subject the object, idea, and social nexus of glass as a craft and concept. Influenced by the writings of Jorge Luis Borges, McElheny's work often takes the form of historical fictions. Part of McElheny's fascination with storytelling comes from glassmaking's heritage as part of an oral tradition handed down from generation to generation, artisan to artisan. Borrowing sculptural models from Modernist ideals, McElheny creates totally reflective environments that are both elegant seductions as well as parables warning of the vices of utopian aspirations.

Learn more about the artist at:
http://www.art21.org/artists/josiah-mcelheny

CREDITS: Producer: Ian Forster. Consulting Producer: Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Interview: Jarred Alterman & Ian Forster. Editor: Jarred Alterman. Camera: Jarred Alterman. Sound: Ian Forster. Music: Pinch Music. Artwork Courtesy: Josiah McElheny & Andrea Rosen Gallery. Special Thanks: Picture Ray Studio, Martina Radwan & Mark Shortliffe.

ART21 "Exclusive" is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; 21c Museum Hotel, and by individual contributors.