IN THE OJAC CELLS SERIES OF EXHIBITIONS

The subjects of Willie Binnies’ paintings and objects are familiar to us and often unremarkable. Yet the manner in which the artist depicts them makes the mundane mysterious, encouraging us to re-evaluate them while engaging our curiosity. In short, Binnie has a knack for making the familiar, unfamiliar. Using a limited or monochromatic palette and source images derived from films, photography, and historical imagery, he provides an enigmatic narrative simply by isolating a single object in his compositions—a fully-suited astronaut lounges in a lawn chair, an entrance to a brutalist-style bank facade beckons us, a depiction of a snowman innocently smiles back at us.

For his Cell Series exhibition, Binnies constructs a life size wishing well in one gallery—standing in stark contrast to the prison cells that likely heard a fair share of wishes and regrets. Within the other cell gallery, a series of his signature black and white paintings depict “objects of desire” that a past inmate might wish for—a plate of enchiladas, the palms trees near a beach, and other objects we routinely take for granted in our lives.

Willie Binnie was born in Dallas, TX in 1985, and lives and works in Brooklyn, NY and Williamstown, MA. He has had solo exhibitions at Keijers Koning, Dallas; LMAKgallery, NY; Paul Loya Gallery, LA; Greg Kucera Gallery, Seattle, WA; as well as participated in numerous group exhibitions at MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA; Wilding Crane Gallery, LA; HVW8 Gallery, LA; the Rachofsky House, Dallas; The Public Trust, Dallas; Dallas Contemporary, Dallas.

Generously sponsored by McGinnis Family Fund of Communities Foundation of Texas and Dr. Larry Wolz

WILLIE BINNIE, Black Sun (Pink), 2024, black gesso and acrylic stain on canvas, 87 × 87 inches, Courtesy of the artist and Keijers Koning Gallery, Dallas, TX.