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Paul Kittelson: "mirror - mirror"" opening reception Saturday Oct. 8,  6 to 9 PM      through Saturday  Oct. 29,  2011 Wed - Sat. Noon to 5 PM Nau-haus Art, 223 E. 11th St. Houston TX, 77008

   Magical devices that alter our perception of reality; existential questions on beauty and immortality; laboriously crafted objects by short men:  these and other important fantasies are addressed in this thinly layered exhibition. Glass, mirror and contact paper are the main ingredients that go into the making of my most recent work. These reflective, transparent and artificial surfaces confuse the eye and confound our perception of reality. Disappearing objects and shifting perspectives transform the physical world. Like all good illusions, the suspension of our beliefs is the vehicle that transports us to new places. 
Our lust for beauty is constantly tempered by the daily grind of existence.

   The extraordinary and spectacular ambitions in life are often held aloft by plain and simple facts. Like the pedestal and the art, one is defined by the other. In this exhibition, banal and common subject matter are juxtaposed against ornate and spectacular forms. Wooden crates serve as containers for remarkable illusions while common furniture holds hidden treasures.Abstract and complex forms contrast the realism depicted by ordinary objects. Mirrored polyhedrons reflect a fractured and disoriented world, turning the surrounding environment into a collage of kinetic images.
    
  The mixing of the familiar with the fantastic and the reordering of the physical world is the underlying theme throughout work. Just as the evil queen queries her magic mirror, we are reminded of the fleeting nature of the beauty around us. Perhaps the meaning of life lays buried in everyday reality. Like all good dwarfs all we can do is to keep digging. Hi Ho, Hi Ho. 

Paul Kittelson