April 14–May 7, 2022
Opening reception: Thursday, April 14, 7–10pm
Viewing hours: Fridays and Saturdays,12–5pm, or by appointment
Day & Night Projects is proud to present Collective Action, a solo exhibition by Atlanta artist and educator, Allen Peterson. Peterson’s immersive installation in the gallery looks at the social systems of honeybees to provoke questions about our own human systems. Peterson uses a wide range of media and materials—from wall painting and stenciling, sound recordings, welded steel, paper sculpture, to honey itself, glowing amber in plexi-encased lightboxes.
The pursuit of the apiarian metaphors of collective organization and consciousness puts Peterson’s voice squarely within the American culture wars. The crisis of the pandemic has led to rise of mutual aid groups and free fridges, as well as a renewed demonization of anything that may appear to be Socialism. But are insects political? Or is the drive towards cooperation an ancient evolutionary tendency in any species? Questions like these encountered in Collective Action could threaten to blow the whole debate wide open.
Collective Action will open with a socially-distanced reception on Thursday, April 14, 7–10pm. Viewing hours are Fridays and Saturdays,12–5pm, or by appointment. The exhibition will also be available for view as photos on our website, including the option to purchase artworks on our online store. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, Day & Night Projects will implement the following precautions to limit transmission of the virus: Visitors must be vaccinated. Masks will be required indoors. Our garage door will be open in good weather to increase air circulation. Refreshments will be served outside. Hand sanitizer will be provided. All high-touch surfaces will be cleaned every hour.
ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Allen Peterson is an artist and educator in Atlanta, GA. He works in various media, including welded steel, iron that is melted and shaped during performance art, hand-cast paper and iron oxide printing, laser-cut paper and glue, and even sometimes raw beeswax that is placed on his sculptural work by live honeybees. He became an amateur beekeeper over a decade ago in order to learn about honeybees in a hands-on way, because his work about bees was leading him to become more specific to the current moment and less abstract. He is currently part of a beekeeping collective at South River Art Studios in Atlanta.
Peterson has taught sculpture at several colleges and universities, including Atlanta College of Art, and currently Kennesaw State University. He balances roles such as beekeeper, musician, friend, husband, and father with those of metal fabricator, educator, and artist. Visit allenpeterson.com.
