CODE PRACTICE (verb): a trigger and not a resolution; a provisional exploration; communication as process.

Please join us in The Drawing Room on Thursday, December 5th from 5 - 8pm for the preview opening of CODE PRACTICE a solo exhibition of paintings by James Woodfill. The Drawing Room is located at 1903 Wyandotte in Kansas City, MO 64108.

CODE PRACTICE is an exhibition of artifacts excavated from James Woodfill’s personal investigations. James Woodfill’s practice has taken inspiration from many sources, from architectural models and hollow core doors to stagecraft and music, alongside the conditions of production and decision making he has set for himself. He amplifies these conditions as he works and reworks his approach leaving the residue of these processes behind at each stage: this residue is what we observe. This most recent work returns to a fundamental connection to painting and color present in his earliest work.

Like slicing and dicing a bushel of apples that must become juice before fermenting into vinegar, Woodfill’s work evolves in tandem with the conditions and context of his practice. Apples can give way to vinegar, but are equally likely to yield sauce, cake, or pie. It's all a matter of approach and the approach is culpable to the fluid nature of its context. 

Woodfill’s approach embraces the provisional: the context of the world, his life, and his studio is not static and neither is the work. Instead of observing his artifacts, the residue, with a sense of heroic completion, Woodfill’s art inspires yet another set of parameters, yet another set of adjustments. As he engages with this practice he synchronizes with the provisional by making adjustments that resonate and create an active present outcome. It is when this energy is generated that Woodfill know’s he is where he needs to be within his temporary context and that his exploration has been successfully exemplified. Often the conclusion he arrives at is different from the conclusion he sought, but that is where the magic resides. Tomorrow will always be another story. 

In addition to the exhibition, we will be hosting an artist talk sometime in December. Be on the lookout for updates!

The duration of the exhibit is open to the public from 10am-6pm Tuesday through Friday and Noon-5pm on Saturday’s.