Yesterday Pam took me for my first visit. I've been looking forward to this show since seeing/experiencing Ann Hamilton's The Event of a Thread back in January at the Park Avenue Armory in New York.
The Spencer Museum commissioned Hamilton and Schira to peruse the museum's collection for inspiration in creating the exhibition. Schira taught fiber arts at KU and Hamilton was her student once upon a time.
After culling through the myriad of art, creche figures with period clothing were discovered
and Hamilton was intrigued. She placed one on a scanner to see what would happen.
The area that touched the scanner bed best, printed most clearly. And that was magical. These images were then enlarged and enlarged again...and finally installed at the Spencer. Enjoy.
(that's Pam)
Cynthia Schira's portion of the exhibition tomorrow. You can glimpse it through the gates. Schira took sections - a button hole, a seam, etc. - from Hamilton's work and enlarged it into abstraction, wove it...and then some. And is truly magnificent.
Creepy!
ReplyDeleteI too, have been intrigued by her since I saw an installation she did at the Wexner in Columbus back in '90 or '91.
So...you find the people/creche figures creepy? I can understand that. There is an other-worldly, somewhat ethereal, feeling about the photos. Looking at them, I kept forgetting what exactly they are, or aren't.
DeleteI love this whole concept! Can't wait to see tomorrow's works.
ReplyDeleteJulie, as much as I love Hamilton's work, it was Schira's that rendered me speechless and held me spellbound.
DeleteThese are so compelling. The figures alone don't interest me much, but the scanned images are wonderfully mysterious and evocative. I can imagine a whole life history for each of them!
ReplyDeleteCindi, looking at the scanned images, I honestly kept forgetting that they weren't photos of people. It was great!
DeleteWhat a wonderful idea and so evocative - can't wait for tomorrow's posting....
ReplyDeleteEvocative is a good word. From what I've heard, viewer reactions range from finding them totally creepy to being enthralled.
DeleteI love her work. This looks like an excellent exhibition.
ReplyDeleteHi Terry. It is a wonderful exhibition...one that needs a second and possibly third look before returning home on Saturday.
DeleteThanks for stopping by.
looks breathtaking - can't wait for the next instalment . I adore those mysterious figures - they drawn me in ....
ReplyDeleteThe figures are amazing. Even after seeing the creche and being able to identify them in the photos, I still found myself creating histories for the "people" in the pictures.
Delete