“Capsule” Exhibition
OUTLET
This event has ended.
At first glance, the bags look real. Upon further study, the materials will reveal that it’s not a typical garment bag, nor is it a typical dress inside. There are real zippers, stitching, and even clear vinyl coating but they are made of something a little different, a little more organic…
In the majority of Cristin Richard’s work, she reconstructs animal intestines into tangible objects. Through the manipulation of this organic matter, these materials build a visual dialog of the conversation about human modes of production, both in a contemporary and an ancient sense. Investigating the waste of modern industrial/commercial production while borrowing from her own fascination with aboriginal cultural utilitarianism – for example the Kapitaq or seal intestine parka, and the way in which all the parts of a slaughtered animals can be used – she creates unique art objects.
Yet, by playing on the ambiguity created by the presence of this material, she develops metaphors loaded with complexities that allow her work to also operate on a deeply emotional plane. Indeed, she is in the movement of artists whose work is related to the body and identity. Richard work examines the human condition and the fact that the body is physically and mentally determined in this condition—the medium of our relation to the world. This installation serves as a statement on our culture at present; it reveals the mindset of the woman, but also the society that puts her in this place. Dehumanized, commoditized, she fights so hard to preserve her appearance, trying to stop the clock but instead she just stops herself from living, breathing, transforming. Further, with the idea of fashion as sculpture, Richard blurs the line between fine art and fashion. She believes that fashion allows one to create a second skin. It provides an escape that is rooted in the truth of one’s own identity. People can transform themselves into whatever makes them feel good, allowing them to approach society in their own unique way.
Transcribed in Richard’s work is her personal story, from artistic impulses to existential questions. In her own words, “I came upon the concept for this show through my own fear of aging. Obsessed with my own skin. Worried that I will fade, and become unnoticed. The work is helping me push through this. Always, the work helps me release the heaviness that builds up inside.”
Accompanying Richard’s work will be a series entitled Meaning in Mistakes by Joseph Moore. Etched into mirrors, Moore has come up with a list of character sets, or pseudo words, that are one transposition away from being at least two different words in the English language. These works destabilize the viewer as the brain on first encounter registers a word, and then registers an error and perhaps a second word, when in fact the word is neither, nor is it even a word. As is often the case in life as well as art, things are not always what they appear. Many of Moore’s works examine visual cognitive dissonance often playing on the brain’s tendency to make generalizations with incomplete or rapidly synthesized information. This series portends, quite blatantly, reflection, causing its viewers to pause and question their initial impulses, perhaps as a metaphor for our own method of engaging with larger world.
Additionally, Matthew Caron, in loose collaboration with Richard, has created a special video to underscore specific aspects of her work. Caron’s work ranges from psychedelic examinations of obscure Middle Eastern religious sects to more recent forays into textile production and exploration of video as an environmental element that we can quite literally inhabit. This video will project cellular structures rotating in symmetry commenting on the fragile balancing act we call life. In reality homeostasis is a scientific equation that requires rigorous investigations of the lifestyle we live, the food we eat, the air we breathe, the people surrounding us; all are affective components.
Media
Schedule
from October 10, 2014 to November 02, 2014
Opening Reception on 2014-10-10 from 19:00 to 22:00