Objects hide in plain sight for artist and former inmate's first solo show

Jesse Krimes first made a name for himself when his Apokaluptein: 16389067 wowed viewers with its scale. A collection of 39 bedsheets overlaid with a dreamy collage culled from excerpts of the New York Times, its transformation of everyday objects into a stunning mural is almost as impressive as the origin of the sheets themselves: Krimes had smuggled them out of a federal prison in Fairton, N.J, where he served part of a 70-month sentence for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. (Krimes says he only had 140 grams on him at the time, but authorities charged him for 50 kilos when he refused to cooperate.)

Last year, Krimes mounted the latest iteration of that work, “Apokaluptein: 16389067 II” at Eastern State Penitentiary. (Here’s our WNWN interview.)

“Hidden systems”

After his release in September 2013, Krimes, now 33, landed a job with the Mural Arts Program here in Philadelphia. This week, the Lancaster, PA native will open his first solo show at Drexel University’s Leonard Pearlstein Gallery. Much like “Apokaluptein,” Deus ex Machina features work made from found objects, many of them salvaged from the “hidden systems” necessary for the manmade world to function.

It’s the kind of stuff that tends to go unseen behind walls, which mirrors Krimes’s experience as a prisoner. By taking these forgotten objects and recontextualizing them in the vaunted space of an art gallery, Krimes makes them the center of attention — thereby restoring their dignity.

“Often these found objects have traces of time and place and functionality, even if they’re not typically functioning in the way that they originally were intended to,” Krimes says. “After finding these objects, I let them build meaning through the process of transformation.”

Birdhouses, PVC pipes, a lobster trap, a fully intact beehive, car engine parts, rubber tires hung from meat hooks, and a malformed grape that the artist accidentally dropped in primer make up the detritus used in the show.

Inside, outside, and in between

The grape demonstrates how the vision for Deus ex Machina was never static. By stepping in to give new life to what had previously been considered garbage, Krimes fills the role of the literary device referenced in the show’s title. He even made use of a bird that met its demise after flying into the glass walls of the Pearlstein Gallery, dipping the carcass in primer and adding it to one of his installations. This obscures the line between art, nature, and the built environment, while also challenging the viewer’s idea of what’s “inside” and what’s “outside” the exhibit.

“I want to make people more critical observers of their world,” Krimes says. “I want people to see things not just for what they are presented to be on the surface.”

Structurally, each installation references those that came before it. This gives viewers a sense of continuity as they move through a space that, at first glance, might seem filled only with anonymous finds from the junkyard. As a convict, Krimes was thrust into a system that categorized him as undesirable. Working with found materials, he can change the public’s perception both of the objects and of himself.

“For me, elevating the works and reframing them in this art institution is a way of glorifying them and making them visible again,” Krimes says.

The exhibit is on view through March 18 at the Leonard Pearlstein Gallery, 3401 Filbert Street, Philadelphia, and is free and open to the public. The gallery is open Tuesdays through Sundays from 11am to 6pm. A reception and Q&A session with the artist will be held on Thursday, January 14 at 5pm.