Mike A. Lopez: Combustion, Release, Light

When asked about his latest project and the importance of finding a home at DANG GOOD CANDY, Mike A. Lopez said, “I feel proud to bring Combustion, Release, Light to life. This body of work is about tragedy, beauty, connection, and perseverance told through the eyes of the people who have shaped my life. Presenting something so deeply personal and beautiful to me can feel overwhelming, but I am grateful to have the privilege of working with my long-time friend and colleague Jay Wilkson and DANG GOOD CANDY to make it a reality.”

“There are a number of indescribable parallels in the way this deeply personal and rare event shares so many of the same incomprehensible feelings that many are experiencing right now in the midst of the pandemic. My hope is that patrons and guests are able to imagine themselves both forever changed and triumph in this work,” said Lopez.

Combustion, Release, Light  is an intimate look at family dynamics resulting from a once-in-a-lifetime fire that decimated the artist’s childhood home. Using his family as subjects, Lopez invited them to reflect on the event and how they each created something from a disaster. Like the project’s subject matter, this body of work was produced amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a parallel time and space of introspection and rebirth. Framed into three key phases, Combustion, Release, Light includes pre-fire, fire, and post-fire pieces within the show. The artist illustrates each moment through portraits and mixed-media capture of a performance art element that revisits the significant moment in time as it challenges each family member to think about not just what was lost, but what had changed and, more importantly, what remained.