by Eric Mack
“Of Stone and Stem” explores the ancient relationship between our architectural living spaces and the natural world. Since the dawn of civilization, plant life within our constructed spaces has enhanced human life. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon represented an ancient, mythical binding of nature and physical structure. Our recent changing global habitat has led us as a human race to rethink the impact of architectural development on the natural. Citizens of the world are beginning to create sustainable forms of architecture, and work towards the long-term healing of our planet. I was inspired to create this body of work after witnessing the splendor of the Park Royal Hotel Pickering in Singapore and the Yin & Yang House in Germany. Their masterful execution of innovative concepts struck me, as a lover of design in all of its form, as the inspiration for the incorporation of natural elements into my work. I have implemented a variety of materials, both natural and artificial, to represent a vision of a world that could manifest in our near future. We must find new ways to live with our planet to ensure the safety and health of future generations. When I imagine the world that my daughter will be left, I am motivated to leave our planet better than I found it.
“We will achieve a connection to nature with the integration of plants. Buildings with ecological materials we want to touch. Integrated gardens we can smell and eat, structures that we can hear because birds nest in them. Sensible buildings that make us feel alive. That is my dream of the future.”
-Architect, Chris Precht
To view the works in the exhibition visit Eric’s artist page.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Eric Mack (b.1976, Charleston) creates mathematically based renderings with a distinct post-modern twist. Works are informed with super imposed grids, patterns, and portals. Layered surfaces are created with paint, found objects, natural fibers, and synthetic substrates that explore the systems of our visual world.
His most recent exhibition “Charting the Terrain” was on view at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles. The show was covered by the Los Angeles Times, KCRW, and LALA Magazine. Mack has exhibited his work at The Hartsfield- International Airport in Atlanta, Canvas Gallery in Malibu, Channel to Channel Gallery in Nashville and The Four Seasons Atlanta.
Group exhibitions include “Abstract Mind” at The Czong Institute of Contemporary Art, South Korea; “Small Works 2017” at Trestle Gallery, Brooklyn; “Checkered History”, Outpost Artist Resources, Brooklyn, N.Y., “The Art of the Matter” at The Contemporary Museum of St. Louis, “This Postman Collects”, Clark Atlanta University Galleries, Atlanta; “Hard Edged: Geometrical Abstraction and Beyond”, California African American Museum, Los Angeles, California, and “New Grounds” at The International Institute for Art & Theory, Mangalia, Romania.
Mack has completed commissions for Modera Luxury Apartments/Buckhead, R & S Records/Belgium, CBRE Headquarters/Atlanta, Teach for America: Atlanta Main Office, and Atlanta City Studio for the City of Atlanta Department of City Planning. He has been featured in publications including Atlanta Magazine, Voyage ATL, Burnaway, Artforum, Brooklyn Rail, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, and Blouin Art Info.