Scenes From A Childhood Coming Soon



Gallery 270 is currently preparing for our next exhibition Scenes From A Childhood featuring four original portfolios by Michael Massaia which will run March 31 – May 16, with an Artist reception on Thursday, April 2, 7 – 9 pm.
Since it is commonly accepted that much of who we become as adults is often dictated by the indelible experiences we have in the formative years of our youth, “Scenes From A Childhood” links work that shines a laser light on this line of original thinking and manifested in four current Michael Massaia portfolios of work. Quiet Now/Afterlife/Transmogrify and the Passing of Things/Saudade.
Most of us have experienced moments where we feel isolated, alone, with an inability to connect with the dominant, popular perception of any given reality. This was the rule, not the exception for the young Massaia, not yet recognized as possessing such visionary artistic skill and it further alienated him from peers, friends and family. The mindset of torturous disaffection and disconnection informs many an artist’s experience of life, becoming the substance, grist and foundation for so many movements and masterpieces in the history of artistic achievement. This meticulous and uncompromised vision often gained from this disaffection informs the work and taps into the existential zeitgeist of being alone and seeking connection.
Whether it’s the rides and attractions of the Jersey Shore seen and evidenced by millions, but not really seen (Afterlife), the fond memories of a grandfather indulging a grandson in the ritual of Forth of July fireworks (Quiet Now), the longing for simpler times evidenced by analog pinball machines (Saudade) or simply recognizing the simultaneously whimsical and cosmic beauty found in a melting ice-pop (Transmogrify and the Passing of Things), Michael Massaia’s emotional triggers have given us entirely new ways of looking at these phenomena in compelling and exciting ways that fundamentally and forever alter our perception of reality.