'Plastic Musings' art exhibition featured at Carson City Courthouse Gallery

Samuel Osheroff, artistically inspired by the chaos and beauty of the manufactured world, brings a variety of media together to express his ideas in his paintings.

The Capital City Arts Initiative’s exhibition, "Plastic Musings", presents Samuel Osheroff’s mixed media compositions at the Carson City Courthouse Gallery from June 1 to Sept. 28, 2023. CCAI will host a reception for the artist on Wednesday, June 7, 5:00 - 6:30pm with the artist introduction at 5:30pm.

The Courthouse is located at 885 E Musser Street, Carson City; the gallery is open Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 5:00pm.

While studying at the University of Nevada, Reno, Osheroff developed his appreciation and fascination with non-representational art. His work tends to focus on the inner workings of a painting, rather than the painting’s traditional symbolism and visual context. In his compositions, Osheroff strives to highlight and investigate features of the work of which he describes as, “…fundamental parts and pieces that make a painting successful.”

Aspects such as line, texture, pattern, material, color, and composition. He states, “I try to investigate not how a painting looks, or if it's well rendered in the traditional sense, but rather, what makes that painting work, and why. There’s a feeling, a reaction inside, one gets when looking at works of art, whether good or bad, and I’m trying to understand how to harness and manipulate the fragments of a painting that can dictate and curate those feelings.”

Osheroff often uses sewing, found materials and fabrics, and non-traditional paint manipulators (not brushes) in his work to explore the possibilities of what a painting is allowed to be, rather than how it is expected to exist. He states, “I want my work to be something completely new, something never seen before, with the hope of triggering a reaction in the viewer.” He is artistically inspired by artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Jean Dubuffet, and Charline Von Heyl. Osheroff has had a lifelong interest in art, drawing since childhood, but today he continues his painting practice with focus and intent, searching for new imagery, ideas, techniques and inspiration.

Osheroff grew up in Carson City. He spent his formative adult years in Seattle, WA, then returned in to Carson City in 2018. He completed his BFA at the University of Nevada, Reno, with a focus in Painting, and a minor in Museum Studies. While at UNR, he studied with multiple influential professors including Michael Sarich, Austin Pratt, Ahren Hertel, and Brett Van Hoesen.

Alongside his continued art practice, Osheroff also owns and operates Osh’s Fine Arts & Services, an art installation company working out of the greater Reno/Tahoe area. He lives in Carson City with his family.

Chris Lanier wrote the exhibition essay — available online and in the gallery. Lanier, professor of digital art at University of Nevada at Lake Tahoe, works in digital animation, web production, and comics. Lanier said he enjoys producing hybrid forms. His animations have screened at Sundance film festival, and he won the Grand Prize for Internet Animation at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. His art criticism essays have appeared in numerous online and print publications, including The Believer, Comics Journal, HiLobrow, Furtherfield, Rhizome, and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Carlos Ramirez, a Western Nevada College Latino Leadership Academy student, provided a Spanish language translation of the show’s wall text.

CCAI is an artist-centered not-for-profit organization committed to community engagement in contemporary visual arts through exhibitions, illustrated talks, arts education programs, artist residencies, and online activities.

The Initiative is funded by the John Ben Snow Memorial Trust, Nevada Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities, John and Grace Nauman Foundation, Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, Carson City Cultural Commission, U.S. Bank Foundation, Kaplan Family Charitable Fund, Southwest Gas Corporation Foundation, Steele & Associates LLC, and CCAI sponsors and members.

For additional information, please visit CCAI’s website at www.ccainv.org.