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The
Center on Contemporary Art announces the opening
of Inquiry as Collection: Wonder Cabinets, Collage,
Assemblage, an exploration of the ways in which contemporary
artists deploy strategies of collecting in both two-
and three-dimensional
works.
The exhibit also demonstrates the resurgence
of interest in Renaissance "curiosity
cabinets," known for their often idiosyncratic combinations
of art and science.
Running from August 30, 2007 – September 27, the show is curated
by David Francis, Instructor in Diverse Disciplines at Pratt Fine Arts
Center in Seattle, who previously curated Shard at CoCA, which Regina Hackett
described as “bustling with originality and strangeness.” Francis
had previously curated archaeological artifacts for
history exhibits.
The show centers
on the work of six artists who studied Wonder Cabinet aesthetics
in a class
taught by Francis at Pratt earlier in 2007: Mary
Ann Henderson, I-Pei Lin, Clare Livingston, Jodi Reid,
Thomas Robey, and Nan Wonderly. In the same way that
Renaissance “Wunderkammern” blended
art and science, the box constructions of these artists reveals their
diverse backgrounds: Henderson and Robey are scientists; Lin comes
from a Design background; Livingston’s parents ran a museum;
Reid and Wonderly are artists from Lake Chelan and Seattle.
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"Wisdom
of the Ages" 2007
16" x
16" Mixed
Media: Dresser drawer, architectural elements, antique
wallpaper, barn owl head, and feathers,
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| John
Schun |
"Cannon
Beach" 2005
60" x
40" Photo Collage
For this piece,
I started with my usual method of taking a wide
variety of photographs. Different weather conditions,
different
times of day, etc. The challenge comes in figuring out
how to
assemble the various photos into a unified image or
scene. An added
element for this particular work was my interest in
naturally
repeating patterns. Wood grain that looks like a sunset,
for
instance. Similarities in the water, sand, rocks, clouds,
logs,
plants and animals. Some people have said that the result
looks like
something out of science fiction, or like some sort
of violent
apocalypse. Of course, some others see a beautiful sunset
on the
beach. It just goes to show that the artist doesn't
always know
exactly what they are making or what people will see
in the result.
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| Jill Levine |
"Rocks
and Maps" 2003
24" x
32" Polymerized clay, map pins, transparencies 
"Mold
Studies" 2006
One variation
of an ongoing photo experiment with mold - size varies
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| Thomas
Edwin Robey |
"Gratiaedonatus
oriens"
11" x
9" x 9" Mixed Meia: Wood, Acrylic, Glass, Assorted Rodents
"Seattle
Colors"
9" x
9" x 2" Mixed Media: Wood, Cork, Glass, Berries
These pieces project
the Wunderkammern tradition on modern urban culture. City dwellers
are increasingly separated from the natural world that exists around
them. By presenting assemblages of commonly encountered (and overlooked)
items in a manner that evokes curiosity and wonder, I hope to rekindle
the viewerís connection with nature. Meticulous sorting of
the cabinetsí contents and their clinical presentation suggest
more broadly that science can be employed to provide insight into
day-to-day encounters with our surroundings. |
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| I-Pei
Lin |
"Cage"
5.24" x
8.5" x 3.5" Mixed media: wood, water, animal bones, artificial
grass, magnolia leaf, medical beaker, silver found trinket,
joss paper, Chinese chess piece |
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| Clare Livingston |
"Reembedded"
Mixed
media.
"I
think of of boxes as little rooms, a wonder in themselves.
Their lids are little doors, and the contents, however
ordered, may be displayed or concealed. A containment
for chaos.
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| Seb Barnett |
"Little
Possibility" 2006
8” x
6 ” x 2” Mixed media: Test tube, seedling, cork, copper
wire, ink, plant dyes from arailia, tulip, crasanthamum,
salal, anato, and elderberry
"But
a Dream" 2006
13” x
7 ” x 2” Mixed media: Aged cedar, leather, copper nails,
colored pencil, bee ’s wax, ink, hatched butterfly chrysalis |
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| David Francis |
"Bird
Skulls" 2005-2007
9”
x 6” Mixed media: Wood, glue, oil paint, bird skulls, gloss
"Fish
Heads" 2003-2007
27” x
18” Mixed media: Wood, fish heads, fiberglass resin, epoxy, oil
paint
"I think
of of boxes as little rooms, a wonder in themselves. Their lids are
little doors, and the contents, however ordered, may be displayed or
concealed. A containment for chaos. |
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| Scott Ezell |
"Ocean
Hieroglyphic " 2005
8.5” x
11” Oil on paper
Scott
Ezell’s paintings juxtapose the space aesthetic of Chinese
landscape paintings with Western materials and themes.
They explore relationships between archetypes, landscapes, and the
organic-industrial
duality of contemporary life. In 1992 Scott Ezell
traveled to Asia to study Chinese language and culture, including
calligraphy and
traditional landscape painting. From 2002 – 2004 he lived and
worked with a community of aboriginal artists on the
Pacific coast of Taiwan. In December 2004 he directed and collaborated
with local
artists in Beijing to produce “Urban Hieroglyphics,” a
performance art piece combining improvisational music,
dance, and painting. In 2006 he lived and worked in Barcelona. In
September
2007 Scott Ezell will travel to New Caledonia to participate
in a cultural exchange project with Pacific tribal artists. He lives
Seattle. |
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| Nan Wonderly |
Title:
Child/Funnel 2007
Dimensions: approx 4x4x12î
Media: assemblage Materials: found objects
Title:
La Verguenza 2007
Dimensions: approx 19x8x31
Media: assemblage Materials: found objects
"It
just comes out, from somewhere on the continuum between
archetype and autobiography." |
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