Slack Tide Time At Duck Creek in Springs

From September 14 to October 13, the Arts Center at Duck Creek in East Hampton hosts “Slack Tide,” a group exhibition curated by Matthew Nichols that features art by peter campus (stet), Cindy Hinant, Matthew Larson, Luke Murphy, Hanna Sandin, Jean Shin, and Carrie Yamaoka.

[caption id="attachment_96456" align="alignleft" width="234"] Matthew Larson “Untitled,” 2019.[/caption]

Tides rise and fall. They ebb and they flow. The term “slack tide” describes a periodic state when little to no tidal movement is detectable. This short-lived phenomenon occurs just before the tide reverses direction – from flood to ebb, or from ebb to flood. As one current yields to the other, an aquatic stasis is achieved, a brief and sometimes appreciable sense of calm and equilibrium.

Not unlike a slack tide, an art exhibition invites a short stretch of contemplative looking between arrival and departure. The works on view in “Slack Tide”manifest the premise through a wide range of materials and creative processes. Water is a presence in some of the art, including a digital video shot on the shores of Shinnecock Bay. Other allusions to tidal forces are decidedly abstract and not necessarily intended by their makers.

Yet when viewed together in the Duck Creek barn, in close proximity to Three Mile Harbor, these varied works prove to share a number of tidal qualities and motifs.

Matthew Nichols is an Associate Professor of art history at Christie’s Education in New York. His nautical knowledge is limited, but tracks the tides in order to walk his dog along the beach in Sea Cliff, New York.

[caption id="attachment_96454" align="alignright" width="300"] Jean Shin “Surface Tension 3A & 3B."[/caption]

The show opens with a reception on Saturday, September 14 from 5 to 7 p.m. The exhibition hours are Friday to Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. and by appointment. The Arts Center at Duck Creek is at 127 Squaw Road in the Springs district of East Hampton. Visit duckcreekarts.org for details.