Brendan Fernandes "Exhibition"
Momenta Art
This event has ended.
The work of Brendan Fernandes approaches the issue of culture as something endlessly deferred, with roots that may be pulled but never unearthed. The artist – whose family is Indian from the former Portuguese colony of Goa – grew up in Kenya then Canada before moving to New York and has never visited India. Within his own history are written the migrations of both colonial and post-colonial eras, begging the question of whether cultural authenticity is ever possible within the flux of history.
In this, the artist's first solo exhibition in New York, Fernandes presents a number of objects that approach this elusive question. First, the viewer is confronted with a number of pre-fabricated deer decoys wearing reproductions of African masks. Decoys are designed to lure actual deer. While the masks, which usually hide identity, here reveal and amplify the falsity beneath. The fact that the masks are cast from originals that were made as souvenirs by African craftsmen reveals a complexly nested and shifting cultural ground.
Media
Schedule
from May 30, 2008 to June 30, 2008
Opening Reception: May 30, 7-9pm.