LOS ANGELES, CA.- Metro Gallery presents Paul Guillemette’s solo exhibition, “Finished Wood.” Sculptor, ceramicist and painter Paul Guillemette’s arresting new work is a wholly original commentary on the process of transformation. The wall-hung works begin with pieces of discarded packing wood, pressed thin and marked with the signs of practical use. Guillemette assembles these pieces in striking patterns, and then seals them with smooth, transparent resin so that they seem to be cast in honey. The result contains its own narrative: from living tree with an intricate grain of capillaries, to a cheap and useful material, to useless trash, to a rich and eloquent work of art. Transformation is central to Guillemette’s representational work, too, and the current show includes figures from the artist’s intimate history: a solemn, watchful guardian; a flying, waterborne child; and an all-embracing, Sumo-like embodiment of love. The exhibit will be on display from February 16th, 2008, to March 15th, 2008.