Urban Warp: Collaboration in the Funk Zone

Though they are created using a digital camera, Sol Hill’s metagraphs are not exactly photos. Hill’s fascination with digital noise - caused by non-visible energies interacting with the camera - has led him to capture visual evidence of this unseen world, making the invisible visible. The dreamlike quality of Hill’s metagraphs is the result of a combination of both the digital noise artifacts and the photographic information recorded by the camera.

Enter Chad Avery, a Santa Barbara artist whose hard-edged abstract paintings speak to futurist concepts. Hill’s and Avery’s visual styles could hardly be more different, yet an underlying interest in the flow of energy around us runs through both artists’ work. In September, a series of collaborative pieces created by Avery and Hill was unveiled during the Funk Zone Art Walk, giving viewers the opportunity to experience this unique intersection of talents.

“Warp Street,” metagraph with acrylic, 45” x 58”

Collaborations between artists can help those artists challenge themselves, create dialogue about their concepts, and grow in new directions; not to mention the wealth of good collaborations do for an art community. The Funk Zone (and all of Santa Barbara!) is incredibly lucky that exhibition “Urban Warp” will be on view at Sol Hill Studio (111-C Santa Barbara Street) through October 29.

“Shock Block,” metagraph with acrylic, 36” x 36”