Parlour is pleased to present Grey Area, an exhibition of new work by Ken Griffen, from November 18 through December 17, 2016.

Throughout his practice, Ken has consistently explored the various states of mind that consume or possess us at any given time. In Grey Area, Ken draws on first-hand experiences from his recent residency in Los Angeles to investigate the angst and uncertainty caused by privacy and security in the midst of the digital age. Featuring painting, sculpture, installation and sound, Ken’s new work examines the nameless, faceless identities watching and tracking us online.

Informed by an established commercial art background, Ken’s new paintings and works on paper depict human figures and objects through his idiosyncratic use of heavy and inconsistent line work. Using ink and watercolour as his main materials, these works capture the artist’s first impression of the subjects he encounters. His large-scale site specific installation, Log Out, made from broken glass and concrete, will divide the gallery floor in half, forcing the audience to consider the extent to which our lives are under analysis and surveillance, and the dichotomy between security and false security. Ken’s sound work uses conversations from real security breaches to create a consistent and perturbing sense throughout the exhibition.

The public are invited to attend an opening reception for Grey Area on Friday, November 18 from 5.30—7.30pm at 306 Eastbourne Street East, Hastings. For more information and images please email sophie@parlourprojects.com or visit www.parlourprojects.com.

—

Ken Griffen (b. 1988) grew up in Auckland, New Zealand. In 2006 he was awarded a University Scholarship for Visual Arts. He went on to graduate with Excellence in a Bachelor of Graphic Design from AUT in 2009. Ken has since undertaken two artist-in-residency programmes in both Berlin and Los Angeles, and has had two solo exhibitions, Face Value (Auckland, 2015) and Runaway (Wellington, 2016).