“JUST CAUSE IT’S LEGAL DOESN’T MAKE IT RIGHT”
Jack the Pelican Presents, Brooklyn, NY

Installation view, Jack the Pelican Presents, Brooklyn, NY
Enamel on latex w/ fluorescent lighting fixtures, Incised aluminum with baked enamel finish, bag w/ discarded signs.

"Hand-painted signs are a world apart from the printed vinyls cluttering so many city streets. They have character, like human voices. We've seen vintage sign painting styles graphically rejuvenated in the beautiful work of Steve Powers and Margaret Kilgallen. And others, have brought the gritty street into their work by contracting authentic tradesmen to paint signs for them. Genovese is unique in painting within the living language of the sign painting tradition. There is no ironic pop distance separating him from his craft. His project is transactional in the real world. He champions simple mom-and-pop street commerce by painting nice signs for those who can't afford them. Rather than add a veneer of charm, they communicate in concrete terms what is for sale and, for his clients, the consequences are real and immediate. When he brings the craft into the rarified interior space of the art world, he likewise addresses the situation at hand. It's not just a sign. It's a sign talking to you in the here and now."

-Donald Carroll, Owner, Jack the Pelican Presents, Brooklyn, NY., 2008