2008 Woodie Awards
Downtown gallery features urban pieces
Bryan Lawver
Issue date: 3/19/08 Section: Web Extras
Stepping out of Wood Street Galleries' elevator, visitors will be greeted by the sound of dogs barking or birds chirping. However, the new exhibit is not a look at nature, at least not in any recognizable form.
Far from providing a disinterested look at the environment, " 'Urban Living' offers perspectives and propositions spanning technological and environmental issues that impact and energize urban culture," according to Murray Horne, curator of the exhibit.
The first piece encountered on the gallery's third floor is France Cadet's "Dog(LAB)01." Cadet, who teaches robotics at the Fine-Arts School of Aix-en-Provence in France, has on display a collection of robotic dogs which, from a distance, seem similar to those available in any toy store. On closer inspection, however, the viewer sees that these dogs are not ordinary playthings. Each dog has been modified to resemble a genetic experiment. Plaques on the wall explain the story behind each subject. These include Schizodog, which has two heads, and GFP Puppy, which sits alone behind a black curtain and glows a fluorescent green. In addition to the obvious cosmetic modifications, the dogs are running unique animation programs. Copycat, for instance, grooms itself much like the animal its name suggests. The dogs walk around in plexiglass-walled pens, bark -- and occasionally drop dead. The mood of the piece is lighthearted, but invites visitors to ask questions about the effects of cloning and genetic experimentation.
An adjacent room contains "Cell Phone Disco" by InformationLab. InformationLab's stated goal is "to create new ways of interfacing the diversity of information flows and the public space and its constructions as architecture." The work looks simple. A huge piece of plastic embedded with diodes hangs diagonally across most of the room, beginning at about thigh-level and stretching nearly to the ceiling. A note painted on the doorway instructs visitors to make a cell phone call. Upon doing so, the diodes begin to light up rapidly and appear to dance, activated by cell phone signals. Even after hanging up, the diodes continue for a while, showing just how full of electronic signals the air truly is.
Far from providing a disinterested look at the environment, " 'Urban Living' offers perspectives and propositions spanning technological and environmental issues that impact and energize urban culture," according to Murray Horne, curator of the exhibit.
The first piece encountered on the gallery's third floor is France Cadet's "Dog(LAB)01." Cadet, who teaches robotics at the Fine-Arts School of Aix-en-Provence in France, has on display a collection of robotic dogs which, from a distance, seem similar to those available in any toy store. On closer inspection, however, the viewer sees that these dogs are not ordinary playthings. Each dog has been modified to resemble a genetic experiment. Plaques on the wall explain the story behind each subject. These include Schizodog, which has two heads, and GFP Puppy, which sits alone behind a black curtain and glows a fluorescent green. In addition to the obvious cosmetic modifications, the dogs are running unique animation programs. Copycat, for instance, grooms itself much like the animal its name suggests. The dogs walk around in plexiglass-walled pens, bark -- and occasionally drop dead. The mood of the piece is lighthearted, but invites visitors to ask questions about the effects of cloning and genetic experimentation.
An adjacent room contains "Cell Phone Disco" by InformationLab. InformationLab's stated goal is "to create new ways of interfacing the diversity of information flows and the public space and its constructions as architecture." The work looks simple. A huge piece of plastic embedded with diodes hangs diagonally across most of the room, beginning at about thigh-level and stretching nearly to the ceiling. A note painted on the doorway instructs visitors to make a cell phone call. Upon doing so, the diodes begin to light up rapidly and appear to dance, activated by cell phone signals. Even after hanging up, the diodes continue for a while, showing just how full of electronic signals the air truly is.
Be the first to comment on this story