Justin Duerr:
Let the Light Live

Van Der Plas Gallery is pleased to present Let The Light Live, a solo exhibition by Justin Duerr. The opening reception will take place on Friday, October 4th, from 6 PM to 8 PM with Justin Duerr in attendance. The show will be on view from September 27th to October 20th, 2024. This exhibition marks Duerr's first solo show in New York City and his first since 2020, featuring a selection of autobiographical, hand-drawn scrolls that have been more than two decades in the making. The exhibit’s title, Let The Light Live, comes from a recent drawing and reflects Duerr's belief that light—both literal and metaphorical—serves as a constant counterpoint to darkness.

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The show features interlocking scrolls that span over a hundred feet in length, representing Duerr’s lifelong artistic journey. He began this project in the summer of 2000 with the intention of continuing it throughout his life. His goal is to eventually connect the first panel to the final one, creating a continuous, cycloramic artwork that encapsulates his entire existence.

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Born in rural Pennsylvania in 1976, Duerr left high school at 17 and moved to Philadelphia, where he lived in squats and played in punk bands. His career path included various odd jobs, including several seasons on a fishing boat in Alaska, where he experienced an “ecstatic vision” that inspired him to start creating the scrolls.

The show at Van Der Plas Gallery includes works spanning the artist’ evolution from 1997 to the present day, including pieces created just weeks before the show. Among the scrolls are works on diner napkins, pages from zines, and his more recent standalone pieces. 

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In a recent Raw Vision magazine article, critic Tom Patterson described Duerr's art as “mapping out vast, complex networks, interweaving people, places, and events over long spans of time,” brought to life by his “fluidly geometric, horror-vacui structures.” The detailed, vibrant, and immersive nature of Duerr’s work has garnered critical acclaim, and this exhibition offers a rare chance to experience it firsthand.

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Since the 1990s, Duerr has participated in numerous national and international exhibitions, including a 2019/2020 solo show at Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art in Chicago. He is also the author of three books, including The Temple of Silence: Forgotten Worlds of Herbert Crowley, and is currently working on two new volumes, one about artist and publisher Mary Mowbray-Clarke and the other on artist-author Sidney H. Sime.

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Beyond his visual art, Duerr is known for his role in the documentary Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles, which won Best Director at the Sundance Film Festival in 2011. He is also the frontman of the band Northern Liberties, which has been active since 2000. Their latest album, "Self-Dissolving Abandoned Universe", was recorded by renowned engineer Steve Albini in 2022.

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Let The Light Live will offer a unique opportunity to view the evolution of Duerr’s art over the past two decades and dive into the fascinating mind of this multidisciplinary creator.