The latest art exhibit to hit the Art Sites gallery in Riverhead is entitled “Summer of Love: Found and Lost.” The project is organized by multi-medium artist Hope Sandrow as part of her series “On the Road,” which she began in 2006.
“The context is the 1967 Summer of Love when thousands gathered in San Francisco and NYC to press for social change,” Ms. Sandrow said of what inspired the exhibit theme.
The show premiered on June 8 and runs until August 18. It features works from 23 artists and has pieces presented both indoors and outdoors. Some artists include Brooke Bofill, Allan Wexler, Geoff Hendricks, Christine Sciulli and many more.
“The range of artists in this exhibit are from the 60s, when Geoff Hendricks began ‘Headstands’ to be seen in this show,” Ms. Sandrow explained, “to Peter Hujar and his portrait we created together in the mid 80s before he fell ill to AIDS, to three of the generation Occupy Wall Street, students of Nobuho Nagasawa at Stony Brook University.”
Sandrow said that the works speak to many of the issues that the protests in ‘67 were centered around that also still exist today. These include equal rights, freedom of speech and of the press, putting a stop to war, animal rights, environmental preservation and more.
The pieces of art also address more modern day issues like privacy, the consolidation of media, and the focus on celebrity.
On July 6 there will be a performance by Sur Rodney Sur, who is a poet, essayist, videographer, and conceptual and performance artist.
The Art Sites gallery is located at 561 West Main Street in Riverhead. It is open Thursday through Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. For more information call (631) 591- 2401 or visit the website.
Photos courtesy of Art Sites gallery:
Nuke Cuisine by Nobuho Nagasawa (Top)
At One Extreme by Christopher French (Middle)
Jessica Alba by Walter Robinson (Bottom)
