Edie Fake

LIGHT IN THE VALLEY

Edie Fake’s detailed paintings blur lines between connection and solitude, architecture and body. In Light in the Valley the vibrating bolt of color could be read in many ways: is it a pathway, a discotheque dance floor, or transcendent energy? Other structures are embellished with elements that might be decorative, protective, or both. Similar to earlier works that tenderly reimagined facades of urban lesbian bars and gay nightclubs, these works reflect Fake’s interest in depicting “ecstatic queer architectures.” They also are influenced by his move from Chicago to the high desert of California, and by our rapidly changing social and political climate. Fake also creates comics and graphic novels that feature trans and gender-fluid characters such as Gaylord Phoenix.

ON VIEW

Mine (The Pits), 2018
Closed Body, 2018
Light in the Valley, 2018
Open Source, 2018
The Balcony, 2018

All works gouache on panel. All works courtesy of Western Exhibitions, Chicago

LOCATION

Gallery 2-3

Born 1980, Chicago, Illinois; Lives in Twentynine Palms, California

Edie Fake is a multimedia artist whose work includes books, zines, comics, drawings, tattoos, videos, installations, and performances. He is best known for his graphic drawings, which address themes of gender, sexuality, and queer identity.

Edie received his BFA from Rhode Island School of Art and Design. Select solo exhibitions: Marlborough Contemporary in New York, New York (2016); and Western Exhibitions in Chicago, Illinois (2016). Select group exhibitions: Samek Museum at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania (2016); Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality, University of Chicago, Illinois (2014); Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon (2012); and the Nikolaj Museum in Copenhagen, Denmark (2007). Collections include: Fidelity Investments Corporate Art Collection, Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, KS Thomas J. Watson Library, and MoMA. Select awards: Propeller Grant for The Chicago Alternative Comics (2012), Critical Fierceness Grant for queer art (2010); Ignatz Award for Outstanding Graphic Novel (2011), and Printed Matter’s Awards for Artists (2009).