Nerv Gallery & Studios Presents SAFETY THIRD, an Exploration in Evolution. Saturday, August 31, 9:00pm to 3:00am

Interactive sculpture by Neon Tangent, colorful illusory paintings by Grant Billingsley, performance art pieces by Martin Back, multidimensional artwork by Mary Mecca, interactive glitch art by Richard Benavidez, interactive painting by Double Brave Panda, Combustible Smoking Lounge by Offallio Spazzatura plus art by Justin Flory, Scott Augat, Jake Prince, Emily Threet, & Neal Hacker. End Quote

Dallas, TX (1888PressRelease) August 24, 2013 - Nerv Gallery & Studios is pleased to announce the SAFETY THIRD exhibition featuring the interactive sculpture of Neon Tangent, colorful illusionistic paintings by Grant Billingsley, sound art by instrument builder Martin Back, multidimensional artwork by Mary Mecca, The Combustible Smoking Lounge by George Mecca as Offallio Spazzatura, and many collaborations with even more artists. If you can get past the giant swinging tomahawks, come swim with hairdryers and get electrified with sound and fun August 31, 2013, 9:00 p.m. - 3:00 a.m. at Nerv Gallery & Studios, 4819 Woodall St., Dallas, Texas 75247. Additionally, guests can enjoy interactive glitch art by Richard Benavidez, an interactive painting by Double Brave Panda, and work by artists including Justin Flory, Scott Augat, Richard Benavidez, Jake Prince, Emily Threet, and Neal Hacker.

Inviting guests to celebrate Nerv's continued evolution with DJs playing on stage and a variety of interactive sound and art, the event is BYOB with complementary ice and cups. Some beer and liquor will be provided to get the party started at the bar area. There is no cover charge for the event, but donations will be happily accepted.

The artists approached this exhibition without the concept of safety first, giving energy to creativity first with inspiration from such monumental events as sending a human to the moon, or the invention of electricity or the discovery of fire. Hoping to more fully develop ideas and be open to discoveries and progress, the artists in this show wondered if a certain level of risk benefits us and perhaps the thoughts of safety come after the process of creating something. Maybe through the process of discovery and experimentation people can see flaws and work on fixing them.

Mary Mecca explains, "You might be asking why is safety third and why is it not first? After all, what could possibly be more important than safety? Perhaps, in a way, SAFETY THIRD, might be described as something that happens organically during the creative process, implementing the ideas derived from the creative process and most of all, the application of trial and error involved in the creative process. Total safety not guaranteed! By thinking SAFETY THIRD we can more wholly experience the joy in discovery and in creating something new and potentially useful. By thinking 'SAFETY THIRD', we ensure our CONTINUED EVOLUTION. Come stick a knife in our socket for a shockingly good time."

Grant Billingsley, originally from Dallas, received his MFA from Texas Tech University in 2011. He was recently the artist in residence at the Border Art Residency in New Mexico. Billingsley explains, "Using a painterly stroke or dripped paint as a symbol of history, unpredictability, and inaccuracy, I reproduce interior domestic scenes. Everything we see in an interior space is a result of a human decision. From the placement of our couches and plants, to the meetings of walls and ceilings, we show our reliance on an implied grid. Perspective drawing and architectural plans are examples of how we often choose to represent space as a summation of orthogonal lines and geometry. Through producing illusionistic space by means of organic paint marks that reference line, I aim to explore ways of understanding the spaces we experience, draw attention to the phenomenon of our vision and decision making processes, contrast our ability to create knowledge and represent knowledge, and pursue, with cries of solipsism, a balance of analytic and innate, reactionary processes."

Martin Back is a sound artist, performer, composer, and instrument builder. Much of his current work is focused on the novel use of recursive audio signal feedback in electroacoustic performance systems and autonomous, electromechanical sound-sculptures for installation. He has created works for video; text scores for ensembles with unusual instrumentation; music for fixed media; collage; assemblage; and multi-media performance. His work has been exhibited and auditioned in galleries, performance spaces, festivals, and on radio internationally. He will perform three works. Synaptitron for Exposed Circuit Boards and Other Electronics, Copulative Signules a live computer music composition, and Mixer Music With Computer Trace, a composition for audio mixer feedback and custom software.

Dallas artist George Mecca, exhibiting as alter ego Offallio Spazzatura, contributes a new installation in The Combustible Smoking Lounge. George Mecca has been a comedy fixture in Dallas since he was a kid. And as a creative director, head engineer, title of the day, at Mecca Design & Production, he produces commercial art, but exhibiting as Offallio allows him great personal expression.

Mary Mecca, a Dallas native who studied painting at Texas Tech University, creates colorful, shamanistic artwork that aims to speak to the natural, indigenous human within us all.

Located in the Warehouse District, just north of the Design District, Nerv is a gallery constructed from 100% recycled materials from previously loved sets, walls and trade show booths and includes many unique studio settings as well. Nerv shares a building with Mecca Design & Production which has a panel of artists, carpenters, sculptors, and dream fulfillers on staff to help with creative vision. Nerv's mission is to facilitate artists with a creative playground, equipped with studio space, gallery/exhibition space, tools, materials & a community of creatives to help motivate and inspire each other.

For further information, please contact Mary Mecca at 469.207.1224 or mary ( @ ) nervstudios dot org, mmecca ( @ ) gmail dot com

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