Current art exhibition: Covatis/Quo Vadis?

(SCENE) Metrospace, 110 Charles St., will unveil its latest art exhibit "Covatis/Quo Vadis?” on Friday, Nov. 2 from 6-9 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

The opening reception will include music by special guest George Rahme. Rahme is an artist and DJ currently dividing time between Detroit and New York. The new exhibition will be available for public viewing Nov. 2-Dec. 16.

"Covatis/Quo Vadis?" features paintings and mixed-media work by Detroit-based artists Jonathan Rajewski and Chris Turner, as well as contemporary photography by Lansing-based artist Ethan Tate. According to Rajewski, the title for the exhibition was born out of a chat between himself and Turner. The term "covatis" references a haircut, while the Latin phrase “Quo vadis” asks the question; "Where are you going?" Rajewski and Turner liked the idea that the two snippets of language sound similar, but are totally unrelated. Their conversation and the combination of the terms reflect some of the spontaneity that can be found in their artwork as they, as well as Tate, pursue new destinations and creative outlets. 

Jonathan Rajewski received a bachelors degree in Philosophy from Michigan State University before pursuing painting and other inquiries. Common motifs in his work deal with conditions of linguistic bondage, repetition, monotony, surveillance, confession, anxiety, and the political institutions that enforce them. His paintings are abstract, large-scale works that suggest large sweeping gestures of color and panicked, scrawling pencil lines. He currently works in the exhibitions department at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) and lives in Hamtramck, MI.

Chris Turner's thought-provoking, chaotically energized expressions on canvas, wood and other mediums have impacted the Detroit art community for almost two decades. He has provided the city of Detroit with an array of installations, including the Millennium Bell civic sculpture located in Grand Circus Park. In 2007, Turner participated in the “Shrinking Cities” exhibition at Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills. This traveling exhibition was created in cooperation with Ivanavo, Russia; Berlin, Germany; Liverpool/Manchester, England; and Detroit, MI. 

Ethan Tate is a student at Michigan State University's Residential College in the Arts and Humanities. He is the editor of a local zine called “SMASH” and a member of the Lansing Art Works art collective. His photography has appeared in local events, such as the Greater Lansing Art Spree and at the MSU Art Department's Lookout! Gallery.

(SCENE) Metrospace is East Lansing’s City-funded contemporary art gallery and performance space. It is located at 110 Charles St. in downtown East Lansing. Contact Tim Lane at scenemetrospace@gmail.com or visit www.scenemetrospace.com  for more information about the space. Regular gallery hours are Thursdays from 2-5 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from 2-6 p.m. and Sundays from noon-4 p.m.; and by appointment.            

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