The six artists of this group show have re-purposed what many people in our modern society would consider to be trash. Fragments of this and remnants of that are what these works consist of. They are united in their disunity and recall some of techniques of the early Dadaists, like assemblage and readymades, combined with a contemporary twist. The art gallery is a space that is normally reserved for “high art.” Though, in some ways, the contrast of the stark, traditional setting with these capricious works is to the exhibition’s benefit. As I walked around alone in the empty exhibition I couldn’t help but wonder what other viewers’ reactions to some of these works may have been. The famous line, “I don’t get it” was certainly uttered more than once in this space since the artists here are pushing the boundaries of what we consider not only valuable, but also meaningful.
The contents of a dumpster immediately come to mind when first glancing at Ben Wolf’s Tongue, Cut Lathe; the showpiece of this exhibition. It is deceptively chaotic, a mixture of discarded wooden planks, ribbons of color and hanging raffia. But after taking a better look at this trash heap, a sense of order emerges from it. The diagonals of old wallpaper seem perfectly placed and each color is expertly chosen as if by Martha Stewart herself. The dingy distressed surface of the wood becomes a craquelure finish and the striped rag of nylon tarp transforms into trendy curtains. In this work Wolf combines materials that are often the casualties of a home remodeling job with pseudo-kitsch elements of modern décor aesthetics. It is not a garbage heap, but a shabby-chic masterpiece. As 21st century Americans, we will gladly buy a brand-new armchair that looks like it went through a hurricane or display lightly-rusted “vintage” Coca-Cola signs above our plasma screen TVs, but we would be repulsed to ever have to re-use a contact lens or wear hand-me-down clothing. In Tongue, Cut, Lathe Wolf plays upon the 21st century viewer’s penchant for things that seem old, but repulsion of things that are old, by merging the two concepts in a work that subverts the modern viewer’s notion of value, while at the same time assuring it.
Likewise, Todd Bourret’s triptych of trash seems to evaluate how one learns to recognize value in a society obsessed with status and newness. In Leftover Painting, Framed Leftover Painting and Leftover painting Bourret “tells” the viewer through traditional signifiers of value that his work is valuable, regardless of its content. These three works appear to be constructed from the discarded odds and ends of an artist’s studio. Sundry strips of fabric are woven through a canvas in Leftover painting and in Framed Leftover Painting cast off blocks of wood, cardboard and cloth come together to make a deconstructed canvas. Lastly, in Leftover Painting the old dried paint from the bottom of paint cups, still holding the shape of the cup, are arranged on a black canvas in a loose and colorful pattern. These three works are made of the leftovers of “valuable” works of art, but their placement on vertically displayed canvases signals to the viewer that they too are valuable. Bourret’s clever use of “low” materials displayed in a “high” manner makes for not only a formally appealing work, but also perhaps a commentary on the appropriation of value via society’s predetermined signifiers of it.
Ironically, the work that is the low point of this show is not made of garbage, but is in the medium of photography. The pendant portraits, Furniture Bondage: Hannah and Furniture Bondage: Annemarie by Melanie Bonajo distract from the purpose of the show. True, the two nude females being photographed are covered in various household appliances and trash, giving them a connection to the other works in the show and its Dada inspiration, but they only engage with the purpose of Let The Nouns Fool Around on a superficial level. While Bonajo photographs trash, in no way does she repurpose it. Here she is using the garbage as a subject matter, not a medium. A photograph of garbage does not belong in a show about repurposing found objects. Yet, with their prominent position in the middle of the back wall of the small gallery, I think it is safe to assume that curator, Jennifer Schwarting, would not agree with me. Their inclusion suggests an attempt to be “outside of the box” in a found object art show. The same also goes for Bonajo’s Jessica, a small photograph near the door of the gallery depicting colorful balloons on a contorted body, which I found to definitely be an interesting artwork in its own right, but again, incongruent with this particular show. The figures look too posed and over-arranged, not “fooled around with” as the title of the show suggests, nor can any meaningful challenge to notions of value be derived from them. Indeed, they are out of the ordinary and eye-catching, but their placement and incongruity with the rest of the show distracts from other, more pertinent works of art on display.
Amongst the more pertinent works is Repossession of an Eclipse by Ian Pedigo. This work, comprised of an overturned broken table, Plexiglas and rocks, sits directly on the floor in the center of the gallery. While each component of this piece is very separate from the next, they all come together somehow and feel interrelated through their randomness. The half-moon shape of the overturned table and the geometry of the Plexiglas contrasted with the organic forms of the rocks make for a work that is surprisingly cohesive. Its placement directly on the ground plays upon the viewer’s notion of how valuable objects are displayed in a manner similar to Bourret’s work. Looking down at these objects sitting on the floor, one may wonder “was this really done on purpose?” However, this question can only be answered by the viewer, forcing one to confront her own notions of value.
Placed diagonally from this work, in the corner of the gallery, are the diorama-like creations of Nancy Radloff. Here, the artist uses low-end materials to make low-end art. Tissue box tops, hot glue and painters’ tape sloppily come together in a slapdash way that makes the viewer both puzzled and frustrated as it looks more like a rough draft of a work than the final copy. The tiny cardboard replicas of a home’s interior in garish colors lack any kind of true direction in their motivation as works of art, which consequently make it frustrating to try and seriously appreciate them as such. Their haphazard construction, with inconsistent and messy glue application which seems more of a mistake than an ironic gesture, is almost insulting to the viewer as it reflects a lack of care by the artist, but their position on a plinth reflects the intent to be taken seriously. Poorly constructed and aesthetically unappealing, this work seems like more of an afterthought than an artwork.
While there were definitely some pitfalls to this exhibition, Let The Nouns Fool Around generally rose above the initial expectations that I had when I first entered it. I was skeptical not only of the gallery’s ability to display the works in a professional manner, but also the ability of the works of art in this exhibition to challenge and expand my ideas about Dadaism, society and value. All too often art made of garbage is garbage. This, however, does not hold true for most of the works in Let The Nouns Fool Around. A high level of thought and editing surely took place to allow for this exhibition to be as successful as it is.
To attempt to display, through contemporary artworks, a connection between the chaotic social and economic conditions following WWI and the frightful economic climate of today, seemed at first to be a lofty goal for any curator, much less for a curator at a small college gallery like the Peter Fingesten. Furthermore, Pace University’s reputation is for its business school, not necessarily its art program, so this small gallery beside the Student Union is often completely disregarded by many students and faculty. Yet, in the end, this disregarded gallery was perhaps the most appropriate venue for an exhibition of art made from seemingly worthless objects. The artists featured each created something of merit from items of insignificance and likewise this exhibition gave worth to a gallery that is often ignored.
[1] Hugo Ball, The Dada Manifesto, 1916.
[2] Peter Fingesten Gallery, Let The Nouns Fool Around Press Release, 2010.
[3] Peter Fingesten Gallery, Let The Nouns Fool Around Press Release, 2010.
"Let The Nouns Fool Around" was on view at Pace University's Peter Fingesten Gallery from November 2 – November 29, 2010.
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