There’s a saying that goes something along the lines of, “the only reason writers ever publish their work, is so that they can finally stop editing.” I like this saying as it brings to the surface certain implied concepts about the nature of a writer’s (and subsequently, any artist’s) work. Concepts such as, the necessary link between the artist and their work; it is personal, it is subjective, it is reflective. Every piece is, ultimately, part of an artist’s larger oeuvre-otherwise referred to as their artistic career (but you could go so far as to say their entire artistic life). What this means is that, for the artist, their work is an ongoing and unending process where each piece is a permanent document of a single aspect of their overall statement of purpose. Sometimes it is difficult to finally put down that period and declare something finished-you are not finished as an artist, so how can an idea ever be finished?
So when Harbor Art Gallery artist in residence, and current UMB student, Dereck Mangus, titled his recent exhibit “Works in Progress,” it quickly becomes apparent he is referring to more than just the explicit themes of construction and assemblage common in much of his work. Dereck Mangus, the artist, is very much a work in progress himself, and this is exactly what makes his exhibit, showing up until April 21, so successful. Mangus skillfully works these concepts into all his pieces on several different levels so that it gives each individual piece a stronger sense of relevance and deliberate purpose.
All his pieces are given simple and unassuming titles and can be broken up into several distinct series. The first is a group of photo collages of buildings in construction or in renovation that Dereck has photographed from around Boston and the surrounding metro-Boston area. About ten to twenty different photographs are overlapped and assembled to create the overall images, reminiscent of work done by British artist David Hockney. But Dereck does not try to hide the process of creating an image; the marks of his technique are apparent. Scotch tape and staples hold the individual photos together and serve to further outline the parallel between artist and subject. Not only are the buildings being constructed, but also so are Dereck’s representations of them. He explains that this allows him to “express the idea of movement and change as seen in architecture. Art and architecture aren’t static. Both are transient. Like [the] architecture, my photography is a celebration of the creative process.”
But the act of assembling separate images, each taken from a slightly different angle and approach, and bringing them together into one unified image, gives the larger picture a very unique perspective. The result is something more along the lines of what is attempted in other art movements such as cubism, rather than what is generally expected in photography. In another series of acrylic on canvas paintings, not only is the subject of buildings in development reflected, but also so is this unique perspective. When these concrete structures are seen through Dereck’s subjective lens, his works begin to take on a more organic feel. This serves to reconnect the pieces to his overall environment. Being a residence of Boston himself, Dereck explains that “over the past few years the greater Boston area has been significantly developed. From the construction of several new skyscrapers to the completion of a central artery tunnel, the area I live in has been drastically modified in order to meet the complex needs of an ever-expanding population. Although the environmental ramifications of further developments concern me, I am still attracted to the aesthetics of large-scale construction projects, and the idea of the process that architecture evokes.”
Aside from studying art, Dereck Mangus is also enrolled in the Environmental Studies Program here at UMB. The connection between the two studies is not lost on the artist. “If one is truly interested in the natural environment, which is what most people usually think when they hear ‘environment,'” he explains, “an interest in the built one will develop as well. It is the struggle or relationship between these two spheres that is at the core of environmental awareness.”
These ideas reflect an increasing awareness of how architecture and the man-made environment fit in with the natural environment. Two separate series seem to further demonstrate this concept. The first is a group of photos of nature: fields, landscapes, shrubbery; but they are then accented with building layout plans superimposed on top of the images. In a different series, 36 framed square photographs are arranged into a large square. Each image is a photo of everyday objects and surfaces, some from natural environment others from the man-made environment, but each display a decided square pattern. Both of these series seem to at one time contrast the two environments, the natural and the built, while at the same time drawing similar conclusions. Plants, buildings, food, toys, and landscapes all combine elements of functionality with form, and when put in this context the results are rather stunning.
Dereck’s interest in both environmentalism and art, combine within his work. The personal, subjective, and reflective aspects of both his art and his life cannot be separated. The idea of the artist as work in progress is explored in his final piece in the exhibit. It is an installation piece; the artist’s own room has been re-constructed in a corner of the Harbor Art Gallery complete with books, chairs, a TV, and an easel. Here, Dereck frequently stops in and spends time finishing up on one of his in progress acrylic paintings. The audience is invited to talk and interact with Dereck Mangus as he continues to define his ongoing work in progress.
Works In Progress – Representations of the Built Environment the current exhibit by Dereck Mangus will be in the Harbor Art Gallery from March 31-April 21.
