Tantric Wealth by Derek Larson

Press Street’s Antenna Gallery is pleased to present Tantric Wealth, a solo exhibition of work by Derek Larson. Presented in conjunction with St. Claude Art District’s newest venue, May Gallery and Residency at 2839 N. Robertson Street, it marks the end of Antenna and Press Street’s satellite programming (our next exhibition will be in our brand new space!) and it also marks the grand opening exhibition for May. In Tantric Wealth, Larson has produced a multimedia installation which includes large scale sculptural forms illuminated by precisely cropped projections of vibrant moving images, and screen printed original global currency themed Yantras. A Yantra is generally considered a printed pattern or symbol used for meditative purposes. In Sanskrit, the word Yantra means “instrument” or “machine.” Larson’s installation superimposes concepts of financial economy, emotional happiness and consumer psychology.
From the artist:
“What can you do when opportunities become out of reach, and when your choices dwindle to fewer and fewer? Current psychological research actually suggests that having fewer choices will make you happier and, conversely, having too many options is stressful. So how important is it to empower yourself? What about economic free-will and the idea that hard work will lead to success? What can one individual do? What are your options? Can you even empower yourself? Stare into the Yantra prints… Meditate on the layered currencies of the world. Feel the wealth of the world inhabit your body. Find faith in spiritual healing again, like when you used to read the Tao. That was a short and rocky time in your life but try remember the comfortable loneliness. Find your previous self, the one that didn’t have any money and didn’t care. Didn’t know how to care. No caring. That’s you. You’re free to float across the landscape, like that time you drove across the country with your old friend whom you’ve lost touch with. Let go… and enter the tantric economy. It isn’t worth it.”
Derek Larson is from Seattle and received his MFA from the Yale School of Art and has exhibited in the US and internationally, recently he presented his Memes project at the Finnish Museum of Photography in Helsinki. He has participated in a number of residencies including the Yale Norfolk Program and Arteles in Finland. His work has been featured in the Seattle Times, NY Arts Magazine and Rhizome @ The New Museum in New York.
Each of May’s exhibitions will also feature a unique artist round table discussion, and for Tantric Wealth you are invited to check it out on Saturday October 13th at 3pm. It will be Moderated by Tori Bush (Pelican Bomb) and will feature Larson, Dave Greber (The Front), Reggie Rodrigue (Pelican Bomb), and Annie Yalon (Loyola).
Show your support for Saint Claude’s newest exhibition space!
May gallery & residency is awesome, and that’s why we chose to end our homeless programming season with Tantric Wealth at May.  They’ve poured countless hours into developing a truly spectacular space like no other in the city and now they’re doing a kickstarter campaign to build a seriously ambitious first year of programming. If you frequent the St. Claude galleries, we encourage you to not only visit May, but also to pledge a little scratch to support the newest in the St. Claude family.
Visit http://kck.st/Qy5POO to pledge your support for May gallery & international residency today, and get a copy of the May Catalogue, or a  handmade print by Derek Larson!