黑料不打烊

What is normal? The tandem exhibitions 鈥淯s Versus Them鈥�, 鈥淢asters of Collective Reality鈥�  conceived by Phoenix-based artist Jon Haddock look beyond the comics of superheros and villains, to a handful of comic artists who utilize the frame of a comic as a platform to explore the struggle of the isolated, individual鈥檚 experience and our collective reality.
 
For 鈥淢asters of Collective Reality鈥� Haddock has selected widely-recognized comic artists such as Rory Hayes, Joe Sacco, John Stanley, Jim Woodring and Basil Wolverton, artists whose idiosyncrasies and technical virtuosity he has long admired. Each employs the comic as a means of grappling with life鈥檚 inequities鈥攑ersonal, cultural and political.
 
Haddock鈥檚 installation 鈥淯s Versus Them鈥� explores the divergence of the comic reader鈥檚 personal world from the shared fantasy world of comics. Haddock excavates the isolating, and often fetishistic, experience of comic fandom. One series of sculptures by Haddock consists of statuesque portraits of the iconoclastic male comic reader, including celebrated individuals such as Science Fiction writer Philip K. Dick and Haddock鈥檚 own self-portrait. These works recognize the commonalities of comic fans, struggling to exercise agency in the face of an alienating world. As well, Haddock, internationally renowned for his politically provocative work, employs the comic book format as a vehicle for addressing the intimate personal questions that concern him. He will also create new work in comics for the exhibition.