Friday Opening: Robin Grearson Curates Criminy Johnson's 'Dreaming Without Sleeping' At The Active Space

 

Back in June we highlighted Stay Gold, 3rd Ward teacher Robin Grearson's curatorial debut during Bushwick Open Studios. We also featured her second curatorial endeavor, the two-person show Is Between, which she organized for Bushwick Beat Nite. Now she's curated her third exhibition, Dreaming Without Sleep, which opens this Friday, February 24 from 7-10pm at The Active Space.

Dreaming Without Sleeping showcases the work of Criminy Johnson, also known for his street art as QRST. "Criminy Johnson creates oil paintings depicting the strange environments and subjects he imagines, and while working out his ideas, he often makes wheatpastes that relate to these in some way," Grearson says in the press release for the exhibition. As Johnson's first NYC solo show, Dreaming Without Sleeping gives those familiar with his street work (which you may have encountered around the neighborhood) a chance to see another side of his art.

Friday's exhibition reception will also celebrate the grand opening of The Active Space, which just put the finishing touches on its new gallery space. Grearson invited us over to check out the gallery and an in-progress QRST wall mural that Johnson is creating for Dreaming Without Sleeping. Check out some photos, along with some Johnson's oil paintings after the jump.

Make sure you get to Friday's opening early, as the first people to arrive can snag a very limited number of one-of-a-kind drawings straight from the hands of Mr. Criminy Johnson.

And if you're having trouble finding the right words to describe your own art, keep an eye out for upcoming sessions of Grearson's 3rd Ward class, Learn to Love Your Artist Statement (or at least make friends).

-- John Ruscher