Genevieve Waller: Faux Bois, with opening readings by Jessica Lawson and Mathias Svalina, August 26 to September 18, 2016

Denver-based artist Genevieve Waller is mounting a solo exhibition entitled Faux Bois at Counterpath opening on August 26th. The term “faux bois” refers to the centuries-old decorative art tradition of trompe l’oeil, imitation wood. In a series of photographs, sculptures, and site-specific installations that make up the exhibit, Genevieve uses the faux bois art form as a jumping off point to talk about the status of the real, the meaning of substitution, and pleasures of the fake.

Genevieve Waller is an artist and scholar who creates photograms (cameraless photographs), sculpture, drawings, and videos that deal with excess, substitution, transparency, and the status of everyday objects. She researches and writes about the aesthetic of camp, the history of gay culture, film, modern and contemporary art, and popular music. She grew up in Wichita, Kansas, where she received an undergraduate degree in art history at Wichita State University. In 2006, she completed a M.F.A. in photography and art history at Ohio University and in 2012 she obtained a M.A. in visual and cultural studies at the University of Rochester. She spent a year in Berlin, Germany as a Fulbright grantee and for many years was a college radio DJ.

Jessica Lawson’s poetry and reviews have appeared in Dusie and Jacket2. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Smith College and a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa, and is currently in the MFA poetry program at CU-Boulder, where she teaches classes on creative writing and LGBT literature. She lives in Denver with her two children.

Mathias Svalina is the author of Wastoid (Big Lucks Books, 2014), The Explosions (Subito Press, 2012), and Destruction Myth (Cleveland State University Poetry Center, 2009). He is the coeditor at Octopus Books and lives in Denver, Colorado.