Dust in an Oyster Shell

In a repurposed garage in Savannah, Georgia, a stone floor grounds an unexpected white cube space with a pitched roof and exposed rafters. Tucked amid the junctures of wall and ceiling or suspended from beams, the exhibitions at Blue Boy emphasize work by artists based around the Southeast and beyond. It’s run by designer and curator Phillip McClure, in whose back yard the gallery sits.

McClure’s poetic curation, like the aptly named inaugural show Poems, featuring Sarah Hess and Sara Malpass, focuses on material juxtapositions and unique interpretations of space. Devin Balara and David Onri Anderson’s abysmos, for example, transformed the one-room space into a meditation on time, depth, and the cosmos, with sculptural elements serving as something akin to gateways or partitions that drew visitors deeper in the space, in spite of its small footprint.

In partnership with alternative spaces Living Skin, Service, and Curmudgeon, McClure also co-organizes an exhibition space called Nine in New York’s Chinatown-Two Bridges neighborhood, which serves as a sibling space to Blue Boy and a platform for cross-pollination between regions and curatorial concepts.

Blue Boy’s current exhibition, Dust in an Oyster Shell, features work by Gabrielle Constantine and Brendan Shea—an exploration of identity, materials, labor, and transformation. It’s accompanied by a wonderful text by Rusha Bartlett and continues through January 17 by appointment. ✧

All images courtesy of Blue Boy.