A dirty frame :: Albert Merola Gallery opens "Eliminate"

Just in time for the Provincetown film festival, the Albert Merola Gallery opens "Eliminate," an exhibit of contemporary art curated by legendary director John Waters. Nineteen artists are represented in a variety of mediums. As befits a show overseen by The Pope of Trash, much of the show is provocative, including bodily fluids used as paint and a photo of a man waving a flag that reminded us of a famous scene from Pink Flamingos.

"'Eliminate' can mean many things," says Waters. "Bodily excretion, erasure, minimalism, purification, disappearance, natural disaster, and murder. All subjects that lend themselves well to contemporary art, a world that should always threaten and never make a collector feel comfortable. Curating this show was a great chance to gather work from some of my favorite artists working today who can both horrify and humorously delight at the same time, eliminating the safety of a routine gallery visit."

In other words, don't bring your mom unless she's Serial Mom. Waters himself has a piece in the exhibit, a montage of altered stills from various films shot in Provincetown. Other artists include Gregory Green, Arnold Odermatt, Ryuji Miyamoto, Frankie B. Rice, Jack Pierson, Richard Baker, Paul Lee, Doug Wada, George Stoll, Keith Broadwee, Jeff Ono, John Miller, Daniel McDonald, Jess von der Ahe, D. Tobias Wong, Joseph Nero, Mike Kelley and Marlene McCarty. The show runs through July 5 with an opening reception Fri., June 15 from 6-8 p.m. at the Albert Merola Gallery, 424 Commercial St., Provincetown.

info: 508.487.4424 or www.albertmerolagallery.com