Category Archives: installation

Blue Morph at Governor’s Island

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Mark di Suvero work isn’t the only thing up on Governors Island this summer. Blue Morph is an interactive installation by Victoria Vesna that is taking over the St. Cornelius Chapel on Governors Island. Vesna’s work is part of the WAVE(form)s: Electronic Art Exhibition and was created in collaboration with nanoscientist Jim Gimzewski.

The morph is that of a butterfly, which you can see in the blue light on the large screen in the apse. The rather haunting sound that echoes through the chapel is meant to correspond to cellular changes in the butterfly as it emerges from its cocoon.

But the interactive element makes this installation really come to life. The participant sits on a blue disc that lights up, and places the white crochet hanging thing on his head. Suddenly the sounds are amplified in his ears and he has the best view of the piece in front of him. It soon becomes clear that if the person moves, the image on screen changes, or perhaps one could say distorts. It feels as if the participant is the heartbeat of the whole glowing exhibition.

The artist’s intention was to encourage stillness and silence, and only then can the participant watch the metamorphosis unhindered. I guess I was a little more entranced with myself when I experienced it than the artist intended. 😉 The installation is up through September 25 in the St. Cornelius Chapel on Governor’s Island. More on the background of Blue Morph here.

Mark di Suvero at Governors Island

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Mark di Suvero’s large steel sculptures have taken over the lawns at Governors island this summer, and I couldn’t think of a better way to see them. The scale suits the large lawns, and seeing them with Manhattan or the Statue of Liberty as a backdrop is a treat. Somehow despite the imposing size and weight of the I-beams and salvaged steel, they still feel playful. The kids got the same vibe–more than one was trying to crawl or hang from these works this past weekend.
Rust Angel, 1995
Rust Angel, 1995
Old Buddy (for Rosko), 1993-95
For Chris, 1991
For an interesting history of the artist’s relationship with dealer Richard Bellamy, plus some much better photos, check out 16 Miles.

Lydia Venieri: The Last Conflict

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Can a cornucopia of fake flowers, shiny things, dolls, dolphins and unicorns escape being twee? The Lydia Venieri exhibition The Last Conflict: Retrospective: Sculpture, Video, and Photography is, as the title suggests, a mixed media installation that occupies the majority of Stux Gallery’s space that begs the question.
Her bubble sculptures, supported by tree trunks or suspended from the ceiling, depict hyperbolically natural flora and fauna. The materials mix the organic (moss, wood) and plastic. The miniature ecosystems seem like the baubles of fairies from a bad production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Authenticity is hardly the point, however.

The exhibition also featured satin digital color prints from the artist’s “Planet Exodus” series. In them, wide-eyed dolls pose like models.

Their large eyes reflect the manmade surroundings, and suggest a (fake?) innocence in the face of natural devastation. The worlds Venieri portrays in the dolls’ eyes, and in the video installation as well, suggests the world of man in conflict with the natural world.

That message comes differently from the mouths, so to speak, of the little plastic people that Venieri employs.

Rather like a Japanese Lolita, Venieri’s exhibition tweaks twee on the nose, and manages to seem coy about the darkness underlying her plastic arts.

Up through June 25th at Stux Gallery.