Artist Talk: Kyle Tata + Rachel Guardiola Hamiltonian Gallery & Artists

KYLE TATA | SECURE PATTERNS

RACHEL | TRANSMISSION FROM INCOGNITA

In "Secure Patterns", photographer Kyle Tata continues his experimental use of analog photographic processes in a new body of work that explores the use of abstraction as a practical tool to conceal data. Using patterns derived from security tint envelopes — physical devices used to hide sensitive personal information from the human eye — Tata visually “encrypts” individuals in patterns that are applied to film during the photographic process, thereby masking his subjects while simultaneously producing an image. Tata’s in-process photographic manipulations create images that can be read as both photographic documents of reality, and as hallucinatory abstracted constructions. The "Secure Patterns" series investigates the notion that, within an increasingly immaterial culture, personal information can become as valuable as currency.

"Transmission from Terra Incognita" is the installation that resulted from a call and response initiated by artist Rachel Guardiola while she was living in an isolated region of the Arctic. From October 2016 to January 2017, the artist spent an extended period navigating through remote areas of Svalbard, an archipelago of Norway and East Iceland surrounded by icy desert wilderness where frozen strata hold histories of past prehistoric jungles. During this time, Guardiola sent out an email inquiry to a group of individuals of diverse ages, genders and origins, in which she asked them to describe their personal definitions of “Paradise”. "Transmission from Terra Incognita" is Guardiola’s interpretation of the collected responses; her dreamy, intimate and participatory installation makes use of trompe l’oeilphotographs, object arrangements, theatrical lighting and sound to evoke a sensory experience. The public is invited to continue the correspondence with the artist by contributing their own definitions of “Paradise” to her ongoing collection of narratives.

Kyle Tata (b. 1990 Baltimore, MD) holds a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art (2015). He is a 2015 Hamiltonian Fellow and a two-time finalist for the Janet & Walter Sondheim Artscape Prize (2014, 2017). Tata has an extensive local and regional exhibition history, including exhibitions at Hamiltonian Gallery (Washington, DC, 2016, 2015); Area 405, Baltimore, MD (2016); Spudnik Press & Gallery, Chicago, IL (2014); Silvermine Arts Center, New Canaan, CT (2014); The International Print Center, New York, NY (2013), Furthermore Gallery, Washington, DC (2013), and Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, Philadelphia, PA (2013). A producer of small scale publications, his artist books are held in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Los Angeles, CA), The International Center for Photography (New York, NY) and the Indie Photobook Library (Washington, DC). He lives and works in Baltimore, MD.

Rachel Guardiola (b. 1985 New York, NY) holds a MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art (2015) and BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design (2007). Guardiola is a 2016 Hamiltonian Fellow and a recipient of the 2017 Women At Work A.I.R. Gallery Summer Residency on Governors Island, NY. Her work has been exhibited in several group and solo presentations including "Light City Baltimore", Baltimore, MD (2016, 2017); School 33 Art Center, Baltimore, MD (2016, 2017); "Making in Transit", Lumen, London, England (2016); "List í ljósi Flat Earth Film Festival", Seyoisfjörour, East Iceland; "KVIT 1 ÅR", Kvit Galleri, Copenhagen, Denmark (2016); "new. now. 2016", Hamiltonian Gallery, Washington D.C. (2016), amongst others. Guardiola was an artist in residence at the Arctic Circle Art & Science Expedition in Svalbard in 2016, HEIMA in East Iceland (2016), Vermont Studio Center (2016), and Atelier de Visu in Marseille, France (2013). She lives and works in Baltimore, MD.