Jacob Khepler
Jacob Khepler is an American artist, writer, and editor from New England, whose primary project is the monthly newspaper/magazine Mothers News.
In 2006 Jacob founded HBML, a visionary junk shop and social sculpture in downtown Worcester MA. Inspired by Claes Oldenberg's "Store" and Pee Wee's Playhouse, and in the tradition of New England junk barns, HBML was a hectic assemblage of small sculptures, prints, artworks, and actual garbage, for sale at reasonable prices. The store functioned as a location for schemes, performances, and gallery shows by Khepler and other artists. HBML closed its doors in 2009.
In 2010 Jacob started Mothers News as a free monthly publication in Providence RI-- free in the meaning of gratis: without cost, and libre: without obligation. He continues to write and edit the paper, mostly by himself, although the cast has increased to include a comics section featuring CF, Mickey Zacchilli, Brian Chippendale, Mike Taylor, Michael DeForge, Katrina Clark, Charlotte DeSedouy, and more, plus a host of occasional contributors and psychologically valuable pseudonyms. Mothers News is notable for being essentially without focus, guided mainly by a desire to provide the reader with something helpful to read at the time. Topics shy away from the traditional news cycle in favor of larger motifs and structures, including mythology, language, animals, plants, and the weather. It is distributed free around Providence and at low cost around the country, with yearly subscriptions available.
In addition to these key projects, Khepler has toured the United States in a variety of to-remain-undisclosed bands, released records, tapes, cds, and DVDs on a variety of labels, performed in two incarnations of the Secret Shakespeare Dinner Theatre presented by The Missoula Oblongata & Puppet Uprising (Julius Caesar and Anthony & Cleopatra), and shown visual works in galleries such as Space 1026 (Philadelphia), Clark University's Trainer Center for the Arts (Worcester MA), the RISD Museum (Providence), and the Carpenter Center for the Arts at Harvard University (Cambridge MA). He was a featured guest at Baltimore's Print & Multiples Fair in 2013 and the Rhode Island Independent Publishing Expo in 2014.
Image courtesy of the artist.
Cohosted with
Open Space
Open Space is an artist-run gallery located at 512 W. Franklin St. Baltimore, MD. Open Space's mission is to promote a vibrant, visible and connected contemporary arts community in Baltimore through producing a consistent curated program of exhibitions, annual festivals and maintaining a wide variety of supplemental events such as lectures, film screenings and music shows. The space was founded in 2009 in the Remington neighborhood of Baltimore, and grew to include a library, and performance space. In May of 2013, Open Space was displaced by a two-alarm fire. Open Space continued to work on programming including the large scale events the Publications and Multiples Fair and the Alternative Art Fair while seeking a new location for gallery exhibitions. Open Space moved into their new location in September of 2014. Open Space's core curatorial perspective is variety; because the gallery is run as a collective, members bring in various backgrounds and interests which creates a diverse calendar of shows including a wide range of mediums and points of view. Open Space shows local, national and international artists and produces events with attendance ranging from 50-50,000 people. Open Space is made possible by the love and hard work of its members and by the supportive and fruitful cultural community that exists in Baltimore. Current members include: Milton Melvin Croissant III, Chris Day, Margo Benson Malter, Nick Peelor, Neil Sanzgiri, Jasmine Sarp, Conor Stechschulte, Brendan Sullivan, Pete Razon and Colin Alexander.