How about this for an artistic skillset: neon sign maker, silversmith, welder? Some people are just born lucky. San Francisco multi-disciplinary creative Meryl Pataky has kept things elemental for her collection Cellar Door, drawing inspiration from the periodic table and the organic world of nature.
As you may or may not have learned in High School, what are known as neon signs are tubes filled with a variety of “inert” gases which emit different colours of light when an electric current is passed through them. Pataky makes a mockery of the term “inert” as she moves from simple but piercing representations of the chemical symbols of each gas, as seen in the squares of the periodic table, to more poetic creations marrying glowing phrases with natural backgrounds. She also uses phonemic script to obscure the meaning of some of her work. You can see the installations in a gallery setting at Shooting Gallery‘s Project Space, San Francisco, until 10th August.
Inspired by…
(Collaboration with David Brenner of Habitat Horticulture)
Living Wall and Neon, 8×4 ft
Untitled,
Neon, Steel, and Black Roses,
36x36x36in
Untitled (detail)
Photo, Derek Macario
Inspired by… (detail)
Photo, Derek Macario
Meryl Pataky in her studio,
Photo, Brock Brake
Meryl Pataky’s studio,
Photo, Brock Brake
Meryl Pataky in her studio,
Photo, Brock Brake
Untitled (detail)
Photo, Derek Macario
Meryl Pataky’s studio,
Photo, Brock Brake
