Works by Jonatan Ehrenberg and Olivier Babin at the The Pipe and the Flow exhibition
The Pipe and the Flow ‘The Pipe and the Flow’ exhibition at Galería Espacio Minimo, Madrid, features work by eight international artists : OLIVIER BABIN (France), EDUARDO BASUALDO (Argentina), JONATHAN EHRENBER (USA), TOMMY HARTUNG (United States), JAMIE ISENSTEIN (USA), Marepe (Brazil), SUZANE MCCLELLAND (USA), and SAM MOYER (USA)]]>
Source: Galería Espacio Minimo, Madrid
OLIVIER BABIN’s (France, 1979) work invokes analogy through simple processes that both reveal and erase aspects ofreality. HAIL (2010), is half of a paper shopping bag that the artist rubbed with graphite on the wall of his studio and that now issuspended from the ceiling by a fishing line. Drifting and spinning like a black cloud on the horizon, this mobile transforms asymbol of the culture of consumption into a delicate and poetic work of art.
EDUARDO BASUALDO (Argentina, 1977) presents a series of drawings and a sculpture inspired the by infinite distance foundbetween two bodies trying to occupy the same space. Basualdo implies an inscrutable barrier between two distinct beings, abarrier that coexists with the will to minimize that distance, and which only makes clearer the hermetic nature of the humanhead.
JONATHAN EHRENBERG (USA, 1975) alternates between working in video and works on paper employing ink, watercolorand collage. In his video work, the artist uses rough materials like plaster, cloth, and cardboard to craft a textured environmentthat looks like a three-dimensional, habitable painting. Ehrenberg’s sets, characters and plots feel surreal and stylized, whileretaining a sense of emotional truth. Seed (2010) is a video work based partly on Japanese fairy tales dealing with themes oftransformation and partly on Nikolai Gogol’s “The Nose”. In Seed, a man begins losing pieces of himself and takes on thequalities of a tree. As his identity slips away, he faces an unsettling new reality.
TOMMY HARTUNG’s (USA, 1980) video work uses lo-fi effects that are standard techniques in the history of cinema. Hisprocess oriented practice uses lighting and everyday materials to create a visual narrative that hints at political issues such asthe rise of imperialism. The Story of Edward Holmes (2008) is based on a fictional character who is antagonist and protagonistall at once, in effect dragging the story in any way he wants. He begins his journey as a conquistador, and ends up becomingthe conquered. Hartung also presents Stay Golden Ponyboy (2008), a short abstracted video with references to Johnny andPonyboy, the protagonists of S.E. Hinton’s classic novel (and later, a Hollywood film) for teens, The Outsiders. This videocontinues Hartung’s investigation of film history as a tool for dramatic and visual storytelling.
JAMIE ISENSTEIN (USA, 1975) is best known for blurring the lines between performance and sculpture, and for the use of herown body as a ready-made object. In The Pipe and The Flow, Isenstein presents a 365-page hand-bound book placed directlyon a pedestal facing a UV lamp, which, over the course of the exhibition, causes the book to darken and change color. This timebased sculpture serves as an analogy between the book, each day of the year and the passing of time.
MAREPE (Brazil, 1970) transforms utilitarian objects into the poetic, with work that addresses Brazil’s culturally specific hybridof African and European traditions. For The Pipe and the Flow a sculpture entitled Genesis combines objects such asplastic bottles, cabacas, and fishing net. These objects, taken together, serve as a reminder to Brazil’s rural subsistenceeconomy.
SUZANNE MCCLELLAND (USA, 1959) uses language as the visual structure in her paintings. She emphasizes the extralinguisticcontextual cues in conversation in order to construct meaning from what is said. According to McClelland, “Languagemust coexist as paint must coexist as the material world relies on the ‘other’ always. Nothing is original and nothing is selfsufficient and isolation is not a possiblility…every color is in relation to another color and is contained or reflected in some thingand every spill, stain, smear, line and point is a form…this is why I always return to painting.“
SAM MOYER (USA, 1983) creates objects that can appear physically disparate, but all of them employ the practice of returningsome power to the materials, defying their natural or intended use, highlighting their actual nature. The handmade trying toemulate the natural. Moyer uses utilitarian tools like household cleaners as paint.
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