(audio and video excerpts)
THIS IS IN THIS
Installation
Various objects, video projection, audio track, running time: 4hrs
2012
Created for my MFA thesis in the Elizabeth A. Beland Gallery at Essex Art Center in Lawrence, MA.
In 1959 Utica Club beer began using a group of talking steins in their most memorable ad campaign. My grandfather collected all of these characters. When he died in 1989 these were left to his children and grandchildren. I have very little memory of him. I vaguely remember being in his apartment and he would give me graham crackers and orange soda when I visited. I remember two toys that he had for me to play with, a Mr. Potato Head and a robot that counted change, and I remember these steins. As a child, I was unaware that these would become a physical representation of my fleeting memories of my grandfather.
This Is In This is an investigation of the other. What do we have in common? What separates us? The thing is the point of entry. An object’s function in someone’s personal history creates a space for projection and communication.
Outside the space, against the title wall, there was a small shelf. It held the beer stein that my grandfather left to me and various objects with unknown histories that had been purchased from the Canal St. Antique Mall across the street from the art center. The gallery was filled with shelves of objects, empty boxes, and there was a rocking chair and lamp in the corner. The lights were low, and audio played at the volume of quiet conversation. The audio is pulled from interviews I conducted in which I asked people about their things. Two projections looped on separate walls. One, a video exploring the interior of the antique mall, and the other, still photos of objects in people’s homes.
