Tom Sachs (American, born 1966). Phonkey, 2011.
Mixed media, 49 x 34 x 13 3/4 in. (124.5 x 86.4 x 34.9 cm).
Courtesy of the artist. (Photo: Genevieve Hanson)
Tom Sachs Retrospective at the Brooklyn Museum Paying tribute to a defining symbol of street music culture, ‘Tom Sachs: Boombox Retrospective, 1999-2016’ go live on April 21 and run through August 14, 2016, at the Brooklyn Museum.]]>
Source: Brooklyn Museum
Tom Sachs’s highly personalized use of materials andprocesses is rooted in bricolage, the construction ofart from a range of available, everyday objects, and”Boombox Retrospective, 1999-2016″ demonstratesthe artist’s unique DIY aesthetic centered on ritualand symbolism. Using a specialized language ofconstruction and working inventively with a wide rangeof materials such as plywood, foam core, batteries,duct tape, rudimentary wires, hot glue, and solder, theartist and his assistants fabricate and modify hardware,objects, and architectural constructions.
The boom boxes will activate the Museum’s entrancethrough a scheduled series of eclectic soundexperiences curated by the artist and drawing from hisown musical community and the rich history of music inBrooklyn. Public programs to be announced will featurelive DJ sets. Each stereo has been used in support ofan activity, ritual, or event. “From dance party, to roadtrip, to poche vide (a place to empty your pockets asyou enter your home), to laboratory, to bachelor pad,to iPhone dock, sounds systems have always been apart of my work and will be as long as I continue to lovemusic,” said Sachs.
Eighteen works will be on view, including “Toyan’s” (2002), a group of speakers 8 feet tall by 12 feet across inspired by Jamaican sound systems; “Presidential Vampire Booth” (2002), complete with a stocked bar and Presidential seal; and “Phonkey” (2011), which is made of steel, hardware, Gaffers tape, and a JVC Stereo Radio Cassette Recorder RC-M50C and was part of the series “Space Program: Mars”, a massive installation at the Park Avenue Armory in 2012. The boom box sculptures reveal Sachs’s passion for crafting better versions of things that already exist. “His skill and inventiveness in transforming everyday materials are on display here along with his wit and humor,” said Eugenie Tsai, the Museum’s John and Barbara Vogelstein Curatorof Contemporary Art.
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