A special thank you to William Carrol, who curated Astronomia SOLAR CIRCUS!
“The science-based collaborations of artist Langley Spurlock and poet John Martin Tarrat are always far out, but their “Solar Circus” is especially unearthly. This Studio Gallery introduction to our solar system ponders the major planets and takes more than one look at the sun. But it reaches far past Neptune to Sedna, an orphan dwarf planet that was discovered a mere 20 years ago and whose orbit is so distant and elongated that it circles the sun just once every 11,400 years.”
In the galleries: Captivating works of the celestial and terrestrial
Also: An artist and a poet tour a very large neighborhood, two artists’ impressions of natural phenomena, modestly scaled paintings open onto great vistas
“Venus,” by Langley Spurlock and John Martin Tarrat in their show “Solar Circus” at Studio Gallery. (Langley Spurlock and John Martin Tarrat)
“Those are Earth years, of course. Spurlock and Tarrat, whose largest project illustrates the periodic table of elements, can hardly offer anything except a human perspective on the universe. So they mix scientific and historical facts with playful references to popular culture. A piece about how the moon is drifting away from Earth bids farewell with the help of the children’s book “Goodnight Moon.” And one that looks ahead to the sun’s eventual (and catastrophic) expansion borrows the title of the Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun.”’
Arrivals by Langley Spurlock
“In the pair’s previous undertakings, Spurlock complemented Tarrat’s text in a variety of visual modes. Here all the artworks are digital collages, usually printed on aluminum or birch panels. The mashed-up imagery is occasionally supplemented by other elements, notably the yellow and red neon that underlies the piece consisting primarily of that “Abbey Road” song title stenciled in red block letters on gold metal. The cosmic glow of “Solar Circus” is mainly conceptual, but sometimes it’s literal.”’
Langley Spurlock and John Martin Tarrat: Solar Circus Through Oct. 21 at Studio Gallery, 2108 R St. NW. studiogallerydc.com. 202-232-8734.
Review by Mark Jenkins, The Washington Post, October 2023. Thank you!