HGC Gallery Hosts Reception for New Exhibit, “Fancy Footwork”

The HGC Gallery hosted a reception Saturday night for their new collection of art work, featuring sculptures, installments and paintings of waist-down paraphernalia, from balled-up socks to plastic gams. The theme was “Fancy Footwork,”  and everything, from the exhibits themselves to the festively decorated tootsies of party-goers, screamed footloose.

Barney’s New York Visual Director Kevin McCartney provided a stunning visual display he called “Ascension”: a barrage of dangling mannequin legs, painted, panty-hosed or scribbled upon, decked out in heels or boots or flippers, glowing under a disco ball in the final foyer of the gallery. McCartney is known for his unusual artwork that flows from his frequent trips to flea markets and garage sales. Everything, he says, that is old or antique inspires him in his designs, which lure customers in to the Barney’s retail shops around the country. “I like to put things in jars,” he said. “It’s because it makes me feel like I have control.”

Other works featured included Karen Garrett’s porcelaine sock displays and socks on canvas, as well as the works of Sergio Garcia, Carlos Donjuan and Alejandro Diaz, all of whom draw from Mexican subculture and cutting-edge street-smart inspirations in their art to create paintings that are jarring, rebellious and startlingly honest.

The Fancy Footwork theme reflects the gallery’s shoe drive to benefit Haitian children, and guests at the reception were encouraged to drop off unwanted shoes to be sent in relief efforts to the desperate country. A jam skating session was also held at the show, a mix between dance, gymnastics and roller skating. Toe-tally awesome.