The opening party for “Cut Paste Borrow Burn” at Public Pool.

Saturday, November 9th marked the opening of “Cut Paste Borrow Burn,” a show of new work by two artists, collagist Christina Galasso and multimedia artist Anne Harrington Hughes, at Public Pool in Hamtramck.

Detail of “Beautifully Broken” by Christina Galasso.

“Water Meets Sky” by Anne Harrington Hughes.

The two collections flowed together quite seamlessly, with Hughes’ explorations of everyday objects and layered collage pieces interspersed with Galasso’s scrupulously aligned composite images, creating surroundings that were both familiar and jarringly off-center. Hughes’ rubbings and renderings of household objects created an aura of quiet violence, punctuated by their marks on the surface of her drawings—a study of safety pins scored by pinpricks, a functioning iron leaving a row of burned footprints across a sheet.

A detail from one of Hughes’ domestic studies.

“Scorch” by Hughes.

Galasso’s work is equally disruptive of those expectations that go unrealized until the viewer finds them undermined by her imagery. With “Power Horse,” a mash-up of two classical paintings featuring horses and riders, it takes a long time to merely unravel the physics of what you’re seeing, let alone to process its impact. Galasso has a surgical eye for the lines within an image, and manages to use those natural visual pathways to take the viewer down disturbing roads. Several of Galasso’s pieces are mounted on mirrors, forcing the viewer into the work even by the process of observation.

“You Smell like Dinner (Dead Meat)” by Galasso.

“Escape from the Dragon House–“you’re invited to join, whether you like it or not.

It’s a strong show, and the opening featured a performance piece by Hughes that maybe did or did not involve the rectangle of sugar outlined sharply in the center of the gallery space. I wasn’t able to stick around for the performance, so the only way to find out is to look for clues at Public Pool during the show’s run through December 21st. Leave your expectations at the door.

Detail from “Sleep Escapes Us,” which may have been a part of Hughes’ performance at the opening.

Public Pool: 3309 Caniff St., Hamtramck; 313-405-7665; apublicpool.com