Artist Dave Persue recently debuted Liminal Space at GR Gallery on Bowery. The lively solo exhibition is a perfect balance of graffiti, fine art and merchandising. The intermingling between graffiti writers and the fine arts world has been layered and, at times, polarizing; but, Persue, pronounced Per-sway, seems to know what he is doing. He has found an ideal niche, a perfect pocket in which the impoverished purveyors of street art have formed a mutually beneficial marriage with the toffee nosed fine art connoisseurs who seek to acquire a morsel of urban reality. Persue’s work takes something as simple as the “WET PAINT” sign, a subway staple, and transmutes it into an all purpose canvas fit for display in a brick and mortar gallery in Lower Manhattan.
Photography by Simone Hougham.
Persue also has a viable connection with John and Joan Q. Public, providing different mediums in which the masses can possess his work. Marketability and accessibility–these are the two attributes that make Liminal Space a solid effort. If you cannot afford the pieces on the wall, you can easily purchase a patch, a collectible doll or a storybook. Although some of the audience might seek more depth from Liminal Space, it has an undeniable energy. The exhibition is the perfect balance between urban, commercial and contemporary. Essentially, Dave Persue is the modern mold of what a well branded street artist can be.
Overall, Liminal Space is a user friendly exhibition that is worth checking out. While it may not move the audience on an existential level, it is entertaining and worth its salt.
Liminal Space
February 6 – March 10
GR Gallery | 255 Bowery New York,, New York, NY 10002
Akeem is our founder. A writer, poet, curator and profuse sweater, he is responsible for the curatorial direction and overall voice of Quiet Lunch. The Bronx native has read at venues such as the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, KGB Bar, Lovecraft and SHAG–with works published in Palabra Luminosas and LiVE MAG13. He has also curated solo and group exhibitions at numerous galleries in Chelsea, Harlem, Bushwick and Lower Manhattan.