Images of Isolation at One Twelve Gallery
In the interest of full disclosure, it is important to tell you that I’ve been volunteering for One Twelve Gallery since they opened in November, 2009. I’m writing this article because I believe the non-profit, community-serving gallery—located in a church of all places—has become a force to be reckoned with in Atlanta’s Eastside arts scene.
Just a block or two from MINT Gallery and a stone’s throw from Studioplex, One Twelve Gallery is located on Krog Street beside Rathbun’s Krog Bar. A refurbished stove factory, the space is ideal for a gallery: vast white walls, high ceilings, exposed beams, and plenty of natural light. In fact, Bryan Buck, who worked for a lighting company before becoming a pastor, installed movable track lighting when City Church-Eastside bought the Stove Works building a little over a year ago. Details like this one—along with the interior décor and graphic design (by John Bowles of Matchstic)—make the space a sight to behold for visitors as well as an attractive opportunity for artists.
Friday, August 20th, One Twelve debuted their fourth show, One, photographs by Emily Dryden, Joe Martinez and Aaron Pevey. Jointly titled “Images of Isolation,” the photos are hauntingly beautiful and rich in color, yet heart-breaking.
These pieces are available for purchase and priced affordably, framed and starting at about $100.
One follows on the heels of an epic display by Patrick Toups, whose name you may recognize from the iron pours at Castleberry Hill’s Elliott Street Pub. Patrick custom-made 20-foot tapestries to fit the space by first hand-sculpting iron, then oxidizing it so that the rust ran down the canvases like brown, gritty paint. The show was a spectacle, overwhelmingly enormous, and a stark contrast to the minimalism of One.
Annie Drexler, who directs One Twelve pro bono, has worked at galleries in Georgia as well as the southwest since 1991. One Twelve is entirely run by volunteers and only takes a small percentage from the artists’ sales in order to fund the promotions and openings.
When City Church-Eastside began almost three years ago, it was the vision of the church’s pastors to have a gallery in the space. While they require neither the subjects nor the artists to be religious, the church believes that creating and supporting beautiful works of art is part of the Christian mission.
One Twelve is new on the scene, comes from unconventional beginnings, and wants to rock your world.
One Twelve Gallery is open Thursday-Saturday, 11-4.
It is located in Suite 5 of the Stove Works building @ 112 Krog St.
You can contact the director at: info@onetwelvegallery.com.