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Perhaps Kjelland is more sensitive to this transition and state of affairs than many. A self confessed
small-town boy living in a big city, he grew up knowing many of his hometown residents and willingly
participating in the social rituals of acknowledgement, greeting and community. While he
acknowledges that you can’t force people to interact, it is a random act of kindness that defines a
level of polite social interaction. In our age of ever-coarsening values (to wit, numerous popular
television programs and recent political campaigns) civic politeness is something worth striving for.
Milwaukee , as a city, has many things going for it, yet remains a severely segregated urban
conglomeration. Distinctive neighborhoods are a feature of this compartmentalization that are
embraced by many, and it is the collective pride and self identity of each that create the whole. If we
destroy our neighborhoods, the city runs the risk of becoming some kind of amorphous entity where
distinctions are destroyed in the name of progress. Kjelland is well aware of this and laments it. His
work is reactionary to his environment: progress often comes with a price tag but you can’t buy a
sense of community.
- Graeme Reid
Graeme Reid is Assistant Director of the West Bend Art Museum and a frequent contributor to
Susceptible to Images.
Comments? Email comments@susceptibletoimages.com
Paul Kjelland at Hotcakes Gallery
3379 N. Pierce Street, Milwaukee
414-961-7714
Through December 3.
Mike Brenner, owner of Hotcakes Gallery is a Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design graduate and is
still supportive of the institution. Tough to impress, Brenner keeps the bar high for home-grown talent
and when asked to specify why he gave 2005 MIAD grad Paul Kjelland a solo show he shrugged and
his usual voluble persona was suddenly, and strangely, diminished. He saw Kjelland’s work at the
2005 MIAD Senior Show in the Gaslight Building and liked it. His admiration for the artist was
heightened at Art Chicago when a substantially-priced work by Kjelland sold quickly making Brenner
wish he’d brought more of this young artist’s work with him.
Currently, Kjelland pays the bills with freelance photography, which allows him the freedom to work
while also focus on this art work. A somewhat precarious existence for sure but one that keeps the
artist engaged, energized and, importantly still making work a year after graduation, something that
scores high marks with the maverick gallery owner.
3379 N. Pierce Street, Milwaukee
414-961-7714
Through December 3.
Mike Brenner, owner of Hotcakes Gallery is a Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design graduate and is
still supportive of the institution. Tough to impress, Brenner keeps the bar high for home-grown talent
and when asked to specify why he gave 2005 MIAD grad Paul Kjelland a solo show he shrugged and
his usual voluble persona was suddenly, and strangely, diminished. He saw Kjelland’s work at the
2005 MIAD Senior Show in the Gaslight Building and liked it. His admiration for the artist was
heightened at Art Chicago when a substantially-priced work by Kjelland sold quickly making Brenner
wish he’d brought more of this young artist’s work with him.
Currently, Kjelland pays the bills with freelance photography, which allows him the freedom to work
while also focus on this art work. A somewhat precarious existence for sure but one that keeps the
artist engaged, energized and, importantly still making work a year after graduation, something that
scores high marks with the maverick gallery owner.
If there is a theme to Kjelland’s show it is that
he is acutely sensitive to the fact that
Milwaukee is a city in transition. The
seemingly perpetual presence of demolition
and construction has seen neighborhoods
change beyond recognition as old residents
move out, new residents move in and
feelings of community are disrupted.
Undeniably we live in a consumer society
where transitory ownership and built in
obsolescence,–be it with regard to cars,
homes or buildings,–doom entities which
are still viable and valuable and consign
them to beater status or outright
condemnation.
he is acutely sensitive to the fact that
Milwaukee is a city in transition. The
seemingly perpetual presence of demolition
and construction has seen neighborhoods
change beyond recognition as old residents
move out, new residents move in and
feelings of community are disrupted.
Undeniably we live in a consumer society
where transitory ownership and built in
obsolescence,–be it with regard to cars,
homes or buildings,–doom entities which
are still viable and valuable and consign
them to beater status or outright
condemnation.
The artist employs photographs together with paint and excruciatingly detailed exacto-knife cut-outs of
homes, buildings and demolition derbys to reflect this awareness. The underlying theme of
consumer items that once were someone’s pride and joy being deliberately wrecked is a perversely
American trait. Millions of people worldwide struggle with transport yet in America cars that still work
are consigned to destruction in the name of entertainment.
With regard to the work itself, Kjelland eschews titles, preferring the work to speak for itself. Titles, he
feels, just establish a point of focus for the viewer and discourage critical thinking. His materials are
in sync with his industrial, urban subjects: abandoned building materials, spray paint, adhesive
plastic sheeting. This however, creates a dichotomy: while the work may look, at first glance, to be
rough and ready, there is a great deal of planning, drawing and diligent work involved in each piece.
In many of his images, Kjelland isolates structures or objects reflecting the fact that a neighborhood
is a collective entity. Demolishing one or two buildings here and there might not seem to make a
difference, but if such an approach persists then before you know it irreparable damage is done.
Successful communities are those that cherish individual differences but embrace a collective
responsibility for the common good. After all, it is not unknown for developers to buy several
properties, demolish them then build new ones in their place, often completely ignoring the character,
scale and aesthetic of the neighborhood, an interesting game plan given that such developments
often put the new residents at odds with existing ones and undermine the sense of community when
there was a greater sense of cohesion and similarity.
homes, buildings and demolition derbys to reflect this awareness. The underlying theme of
consumer items that once were someone’s pride and joy being deliberately wrecked is a perversely
American trait. Millions of people worldwide struggle with transport yet in America cars that still work
are consigned to destruction in the name of entertainment.
With regard to the work itself, Kjelland eschews titles, preferring the work to speak for itself. Titles, he
feels, just establish a point of focus for the viewer and discourage critical thinking. His materials are
in sync with his industrial, urban subjects: abandoned building materials, spray paint, adhesive
plastic sheeting. This however, creates a dichotomy: while the work may look, at first glance, to be
rough and ready, there is a great deal of planning, drawing and diligent work involved in each piece.
In many of his images, Kjelland isolates structures or objects reflecting the fact that a neighborhood
is a collective entity. Demolishing one or two buildings here and there might not seem to make a
difference, but if such an approach persists then before you know it irreparable damage is done.
Successful communities are those that cherish individual differences but embrace a collective
responsibility for the common good. After all, it is not unknown for developers to buy several
properties, demolish them then build new ones in their place, often completely ignoring the character,
scale and aesthetic of the neighborhood, an interesting game plan given that such developments
often put the new residents at odds with existing ones and undermine the sense of community when
there was a greater sense of cohesion and similarity.
This is perhaps most forcefully addressed in
one of the larger works, (called here “For
Sale” although no works have titles, more on
which later.) A young girl walks, suitcase in
hand, along a street marked by one For Sale
sign after another. These are homes, located
on Humboldt and Brady, that are formerly
rental units that are now being sold to owner-
occupier status. While this is, in essence, no
bad thing, studies have shown that owner-
occupied dwellings tend to be better kept and
provide greater long-term residency. Renters
are just as much a component of a
neighborhood as anyone and they too,
overwhelmingly, like a sense of stability and
the same values as owner-occupiers.
one of the larger works, (called here “For
Sale” although no works have titles, more on
which later.) A young girl walks, suitcase in
hand, along a street marked by one For Sale
sign after another. These are homes, located
on Humboldt and Brady, that are formerly
rental units that are now being sold to owner-
occupier status. While this is, in essence, no
bad thing, studies have shown that owner-
occupied dwellings tend to be better kept and
provide greater long-term residency. Renters
are just as much a component of a
neighborhood as anyone and they too,
overwhelmingly, like a sense of stability and
the same values as owner-occupiers.
