ArtTALKS
THIS IS NOT WHO I AM
Thursday, November 7
6pm
Free For All
Guest curator Neal Weiss speaks about the work included in "This Is Not Who I Am: The Art and Design of David Arruda, Jr."
A striking and thoughtful combination of commercial high-tech adverting, jazz concert posters, music CD package designs, and a wide range of photographs make up this deep dive into the work of David Arruda, Jr. The title expresses David’s antipathy to being in the spotlight. “I do not believe (my work) warranted any more recognition that anybody else who does whatever it is THEY do,” he says in his artist statement.
The full-page, full color advertisements appeared in fiber optic print trade magazines in the 2000s, at a time when comparable ads were extremely dry and consisted of a photo of a product, often a box, along with technical specifications. Dave’s work used humor at times, and on others, spoke directly to the user on terms that were not then common.
The other items speak for themselves. Taken together, the exhibition surveys the output of a thinker and designer, and a photographer who shared his eye with a varied audience, sometimes practical, offbeat or quirky, and sometimes just himself.