Greed, Guilt and Grappling
OPENING RECEPTION
Feb 1, 2008
6pm- 8pm
BOSTON-- Greed, Guilt and Grappling: Six Artists Respond to Climate Change opens February 1st, 2008 at The Mills Gallery at the Boston Center for the Arts. The show is guest curated by participating artists Clara Wainwright and Mags Harries, featuring Jay Critchley, Lajos Heder, Michael Sheridan and John Taguiri. All of these artists are Massachusetts residents.
The show expects to bring to the table critical discussions about the significant threat posed by climate change and to offer modest yet effective methods of fighting back. Through a variety of media (video, textile, installation, photography, sound, etc.), artists in this show open up a dialogue about individual action on a collective, urgent issue.
Jay Critchley’s “Global Yawning for a Small Planet” responds to an exhausted and ailing planet with his signature style of humor and provocation. The two-channel, video installation shows the subtle and distinct expressions of the participants and the artist himself, flanked by large format photos of his yawning image. It’s been shown that yawning increases alertness, reduces stress and enhances personal, community and planetary health. Critchley traveled the East Coast videotaping yawners, and worked with local community organizations: Boston Asian YES, Ellis Memorial, United South End Settlements and Cambridge School of Weston.
Mags Harries’ “One Legged Table” is designed to create community and communication Thirteen one legged, household tables were assembled to create one 14 feet long by 6 feet wide table. These tables can only support themselves in conjunction with the others. Harries creates an actual catalyst and a metaphor for bringing communities to the table . Separately, each table has it’s own history from different countries and different households where they were the center of conversation. Harries installation is a vehicle for bringing people with different perspectives to the table, to have conversations about the issues at hand. Four such dinners are sponsored to happen at the table during the course of the show.
Lajos Heder’s “Carbon Footprints” embeds the theme for the exhibit into the architecture of The Mills Gallery to create an environment that alerts visitors to the threatening, and global nature of climate change. The conversation’s focus continues up the walls and onto the ceiling with this installation. The drawing pervades the gallery, hovering above the other pieces, and by the assembly of many individual marks, renders the unseen threat visible. The carbon used in these footprints includes carbon from the California Wildfires.
Michael Sheridan’s installation, “Instant Noodles”, originates nine thousand miles from Southern California, in Indonesia, which is the largest tree chopping, forest-burning region in the world. The depletion of forest removes the earth’s primary means of absorbing carbon dioxide emissions. The recovered land is used to produce Palm Oil. Palm Oil is used to preserve food such as, Raman Noodles, hence the title. Sheridan created the piece in collaboration with eminent Indonesian choreographer Sardono Kusomo and performer Yola Yulfianti. In Instant Noodles, Indonesian dance is used as a contrasting lament for our careless consumption and the permanent damage caused by our desire for immediate satisfaction.
John Taguiri’s “Igloos” provides another take on a fast paced society overlooking sustainability for convenience. For Greed, Guilt and Grappling, Taguiri built an igloo out of coal to be displayed inside the gallery and another made of clear plastic containers filled with water to be displayed outdoors. Taguiri’s other project in this show, titled Liberty Citizen, is a community outreach and empowerment project. Members of different communities are invited to dress up in a Statue of Liberty costume and hold an oversized compact fluorescent light bulb like the statue’s torch. A selection of the resultant images is exhibited in the gallery.
Clara Wainwright’s "Eco-Shaman Robes." Is another effort to generate discussion about the threat global warming poses. She has created robes with pictures of endangered species. Viewers can wear these robes in the gallery and take a moment to contemplate the possibility of acting individually, collectively or politically on this pressing issue.
A series of programs, free and open to the public, will be offered to help the community engage in the issues the installations have worked hard to project:
THE EARTH BENEATH OUR FEET February 24, 2008; 12:30pm in The Mills Gallery at the BCA; A workshop to examine ways to restore our connection with the living planet with ecopsychologist Sarah Conn and poet Steve Ratiner, followed by a reception. Six Artists in Conversation will give guests the opportunity to engage in conversation with the artists the show at 3pm.
NOTES FROM THE SLUSHY UNDERGROUND: New Works on Climate Change February 27 at 7:30pm; In Vivo Productions presents, “Echo of the Gecko” performed by the Lizard Claw Playwrights. This event will be held in Rehearsal Hall A in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA.
VOICES OF THE ENVIRONMENT March 9, 2008 at 3pm in The Mills Gallery at the BCA includes “Sounds of the Rainforest,” Richard Frota plays musical instruments made out of found objects to imitate sounds of the rainforest. Poetry Open Mic hosted by poet, Steve Ratiner immediately follows the “Sounds of the Rainforest” performance.
The opening reception for Greed, Guilt and Grappling is February 1, 2008 from 6pm- 8pm and the closing reception for the show is March 30, 2008 from 3pm-5pm.
For further information, please contact Alyssa Mikiko DiPasquale at
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or 617.426.1522
Or visit http://www.greedguiltandgrappling.com/
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