Hooks-Epstein Galleries is proud to present Bernard Mattox’s The Archaeology of Solitude, an exhibition of mixed media works, and Masaru Takiguchi’s Carved Memories, an exhibition of wood and stone sculpture. The exhibitions open at 11:00AM on Saturday, October 21, 2017 with a reception for the artists from 6:00 to 8:00PM. The exhibitions will continue through Wednesday, November 22, 2017.

Bernard Mattox’s body of work includes his latest in the series The Archaeology of Solitude. Although solitude is not the direct theme of the work, it is the guiding principle—the result of Mattox having lived the last twenty-seven years in the deep woods, about forty miles from New Orleans, where he was born. Mattox considers himself more archaeologist than artist, excavating memories, dreams, and imagery from the inner strata of his mind. His work contains multiple symbols and themes that reflect a very personal experience in a subtle, yet intentional and archetypal way.

Bernard Mattox earned his B.F.A. from the University of Southwestern Louisiana (Lafayette) and M.F.A. from Tulane University (New Orleans). He has had multiple solo and group exhibits in Texas and Louisiana including solo shows at Carol Robinson Gallery (New Orleans) and Hooks-Epstein Galleries (Houston). In 2014, Mattox was featured in Inside Northside Magazine. Select public collections of his work include the St. Tammany Parish Judicial Complex (Covington, LA), The Pentagon, Department of Architecture and Design (Washington, D.C.) and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Southern Collection (New Orleans).

In Carved Memories, Masaru Takiguchi’s wood and stone sculptures take both, organic and geometric forms. Takiguchi’s inspiration comes from nature and the world around him, where he has learned principles such as: balance and rhythm, the organic growth of life, attraction and repulsion, and harmony and contrast. Takiguchi seeks to embody the very essence of nature’s forms into his abstract sculptures with a play on smooth and textured surfaces—the form of air, water, or light; the feeling of the wind or a breeze; or the curve of the earth, moon, and sun.

Masaru Takiguchi earned his B.A. in Sculpture in 1964 and M.A. in Sculpture in 1966 from the Kyoto City College of Fine Arts in Japan. Since then, Takiguchi has had multiple solo exhibitions in Houston and has taken part in various group shows in Texas and Japan. In 2015, he participated in Japan America Society of Houston’s I am Content with What I Lack: The Poetics of Japanese Gardens. Takiguchi has also been featured in various publications and art reviews, including Glasstire in 2015 and the Houston Chronicle and Houston Press in 2014.

The Archaeology of Solitude and Carved Memories will continue through Wednesday, November 22, 2017.