The law of the excluded middle addresses the idea that something is either one thing or another, true or false, happy or sad. No in-betweens. But as any reader of Rosemarie Waldrop will tell you, meaning has a fullness that must be savored and digested in order to be realized and this can only be done from grassy knolls of the excluded middle. In both his music and visual art, Adam Allred seeks the fullness of meanings by exploring the dichotomies that exist in everything.
Adam’s paintings confront the contradictions we embody. The subject of smokers has been explored by many artists for not only the strong aesthetic quality found in smoke and flesh but also for the complex societal connotations of smoking in the modern world. In works like Felipe’s a Runner and Jack Has Someone Else’s Liver, Allred leads us to address the dichotomies we mistakenly apply and find real meaning in our every action.
Much like his visual art, Allred’s musical ventures exist in contradiction. Listening to his 2009 album Strangers, one first experiences the overwhelming innocence carried through in half-whispered vocals and slow melodies. Very reminiscent of Elliott Smith, whom Adam also readily admits has had a huge impact on his relationship with music, the sing-song style sits atop lyrics of darker suggestion. The sweetness masks the harsher realities of honest lyrics. However, repeated listenings begin to unveil the sorrow tucked into a comforting melody and the listener begins to understand the similar revelation that takes place in our lives.
Adam Allred proves a contemplative artist and musician. The multiple vehicles for his creativity means a greater audience can seek to understand his work in whichever medium one prefers and the results should be about the same and lie somewhere in that soft middle gray of meaning.
