Marianne Vitale “Nine Worthies”
Zach Feuer Gallery
This event has ended.
Zach Feuer Gallery presents Nine Worthies, new sculptures by Marianne Vitale. Following Vitale’s trajectory of repurposing materials from America’s industrial infrastructure, for this presentation she mines once-functionary units from railroad track yards and transfers them to a new positioning, a new context. Decommissioned transport apparatus erected as totems. Each of the cast manganese steel structures, referred to as “common crossings” in the railroad industry, were fabricated decades ago , designed to ensure the wheel of a train crosses the gap in the rail without dropping into that gap. Treated with explosive shock hardening to increase service life, they were laid down horizontally across America bearing the brunt of millions of tons of cargo sliding over them.
The exhibition is comprised of a group of various sized and shaped crossings, individually welded to steel plates endowing them with a commanding vertical direction. Some feature more bolts and mechanical trappings than others. Some sleek, others more brutal and menacing. Several dominate the room with stances over 12 feet high.
Media
Schedule
from November 11, 2014 to December 20, 2014