Ian Pedigo
An Archeological Language
Ian Pedigo primarily conceives of his artworks as elements of a larger system, where individual sculptures play off of each other in exhibition spaces that he has altered and manipulated. Recently, Pedigo has been working at his studio desk focusing on intimately scaled works meant to be viewed singularly. These new fragment-like fresco pieces combine visual elements that allude to past, present, and future. Pedigo’s slippery references point to cultures of another time, another dimension, or another reality.
“Ideas in the work stem from intuited things, like seeing cracks of light appear in the dark. The act of making is then like sitting in this darkness waiting for the eyes to get adjusted to see the whole picture.”
—Ian Pedigo
Ian Pedigo creates wall pieces and sculptures by combining found and made materials with startling grace: an old straw mat here, a red-stained cylinder of foam on a tripod of bamboo there.
Pedigo’s new series is reminiscent of fresco murals. He applies plaster to a piece of wooden board, and then immediately paints into the wet material.
Three Red Stars, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
10 3/4 x 6-3/4 inches
13 1/2 x 10 inches framed (aprox.)
Aurora Blossom, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
6 1/2 x 8 3/8 inches
10 x 11 inches framed (aprox.)
Sea Gold Papyri, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
11 3/4 x 10 inches
15 x 13 inches framed (aprox.)
Blue Pale, Yellow Sun Center, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
13 x 11 1/4 inches
16 x 14 inches framed (aprox.)
Comet Tails, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
9 3/8 x 6-3/4 inches
12 x 10 inches framed (aprox.)
Two Blue Morninglights, 2020
Water-based pigment on plaster with marble dust on primered wood
6 3/4 x 10 inches
10 1/2 x 13 inches framed (aprox.)
Transitions
edited by Ian Pedigo
Ian Pedigo uses an extended drawing tool to mark the gallery floor, creating a pictorial element to a large-scale sculpture, The Trails of Animals and Other Inanimate Things, 2011.
Pedigo applies paint to the gallery walls in order to alter the white-box space and create a visual framework and backdrop for his 2018 show, Torch of a Hundred Statues.
Installation at American University Museum, Katzen Art Center, 2014
“What seems like a casual and somewhat passive gesture, the placing of common materials over a simple piece of wood, ultimately produces geometric cacophony; Pedigo…brings out hidden or overlooked details, as he often does, allowing surprisingly complex moments of formal delectation to come when one might least expect them.”
—James Yood, Artforum
PICTORIALITY
Ian Pedigo often uses pictorial imagery, manipulating images the way he does objects; cutting and pasting, separating color, or adding visual references.
Rubble Mountain Fountain, 2015
C-Print face mounted to plexi, wood
52 x 32 x 8 inches
“For Pedigo, the process, mark making, material and framework of time evident in geological formation [that] become powerful sources for his artistic practice. Combine with this an interest in examining how human culture becomes enmeshed within this array, from both a historical and contemporary perspective, and his work truly begins to unfold.”
PUBLICATION
Ian Pedigo: Works 2007-2010
With essays by Chris Sharp, Lillian Davis, and Ryan Doherty. Published by Southern Alberta Art Gallery (SAAG).
Hardcover illustrated with color plates, 84 Pages, 8 x 10 inches.
EARLY EXHIBITION
Ian Pedigo’s first solo show with Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery was in 2006 in the gallery’s Brooklyn location.
Visit the gallery’s website to learn more about his exhibitions over the years.
Artist Page