Leo Kesting Gallery Presents:
Grace Exhibtion Space - NON GRATA- EXPLOSION
August 22 - August 31, 2008
Opening Night Reception: Friday August 22 at 8:00 pm
812 Washington St (at the corner of Gansevoort) New York NY 10014
8th Ave A, C, E and L train Stop or 1,2,3 to 14th Street
Tuesday - Sunday from 11:00 am until 7:00 pm
Admission is free to the public phone: 917-650-3760 / 917-292-8865
http://www.leokesting.com

As August wraps up the summer season Leo Kesting presents the Estonia Performance Group NON GRATA from the Grace Exhibition Space gallery in East williamsburg Bushwick. The Performance and exhibition of NON GRATA's photographs and catalogs will be presented at our Meat Packing District gallery on August 21st until the end of the month. A live performance from the group will be presented on the opening night Friday August 22 at 8:00pm

From its origins as Capla Kesting Fine Art in Brooklyn, the Leo Kesting Gallery launched in 2003 and developed an aggressive campaign to introduce new figurative artists to collectors and art supporters. Leo Kesting offers the art viewing public an opportunity to see forthcoming talents in an intimate setting where undiscovered, cutting-edge artists are presented to the contemporary art scene.

Leo Kesting Gallery is located at 812 Washington St at the corner of Gansevoort in Manhattan's Meat Packing District. A, C, E, or L train to 8th Ave and 14th Street or 1,2,3 train to 14th Street. Gallery hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 11am until 7pm.

Artists Statement From Non Grata-

NON GRATA is a Performance Group from Estonia.To the group belongs around 40 members from mostly from Estonia, also from Quebec, Finland, Latvia, Germany, USA, France. The main characteristics of the members are ANONYMITY in group work, ignorance of local art world and mass media.

Around the name NON GRATA there have been different hushes and shushes for a long time. Already from the point of view of death of conventionalization of art it has embodied the horrible and unwanted disembodiment of human person, from which the meaninglessness of nowadays art, is pouring out. For those, whose world of arts starts from the point, where the art world ends, NON GRATA has been a liberator, the orphic gap in the seemingly unalterable course, whichhowever betrays us, it is a cure from incest. The main point of the group is ethical - it is the image of primitivism, impersonality and experimental creativity. The performances of the group take place according to the logic of avoiding codes. The presentations are physical texts, whose ways of orthography and reading are kept within limits of real actions by the group members. Aesthetical and provocative challenges are represented in places, where the Art World doesn't work.

Exhibition consists performance documentations, photos and videos from all over the world - Asia, South- and North-America, Europe and Scandinavia about street actions and long lasting "GHETTOMARATONS" - 14 days in the Cellar, 240 h Asylum, 336 h Experimental Space e.t.c. Live performances.