Sarah Hobbs: Small Problems in Living

Yossi Milo Gallery is pleased to announce Small Problems in Living, an exhibition of color photographs by Sarah Hobbs. The exhibition will open on November 4 and close on December 23, with a reception for the artist on November 4 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. This exhibition will be Ms. Hobbs' first solo show in New York City.

 

In the ongoing series Small Problems in Living, Sarah Hobbs explores the psychological terrain of phobias and neuroses. Set in fabricated domestic spaces that are constructed in the artist's studio, the photographs are conceptual exaggerations of various pathological thought processes. Collectively, they function as metaphors for issues that plague the contemporary human psyche such as perfectionism, obsessive compulsiveness, social phobia and paranoia.

 

Seeking to visualize discomforting aspects of human psychology that viewers can both identify with and find humor in, the artist concerns herself with tendencies toward various pathologies rather than their more severe clinical manifestations. The conceptual nature of Hobbs' series is reflected in her image-making process, where she makes use of everyday objects such as paper, paint swatches and candy bar wrappers to create a constructed environment that juxtaposes the physical reality of a recognizable domestic setting with elements of fantastical exaggeration.

 

The end result are near life scale prints (48″ × 60″) whose sheer magnitude prompt the viewer to assume the subject role by placing them in the space both physically and psychologically. Visible strings and exposed tape foreground the materiality of the construction and serve as visual metaphors for the way in which phobias and neuroses construct the mental landscape of the human psyche.

 

Sarah Hobbs was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, in 1970, and received a BFA in Art History and an MFA in Photography from the University of Georgia, Athens. Her work has been exhibited at the Georgia State University Gallery in Atlanta; the Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, Georgia; and will be exhibited in December 2004 at The Knoxville Museum of Art in Knoxville, Tennessee. Hobbs currently lives and works in Atlanta.