"Transformed" Will Change the Way You Think About Art
July 11- September 28, 2008
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA-The Contemporary Art Center of Virginia (CAC) wants you to see toilet paper rolls and gummy bears in a new way.
Those are just two of the unique materials employed by thirteen artists in "Transformed," a group exhibition of two-dimensional, sculptural, installation and video art on view from July 11-September 28. Commonplace objects including fishing line, chairs, toothpicks and light bulbs have been manipulated, re-appropriated and elevated to the status of fine art.
"These materials are frequently relied upon for utilitarian purposes," said CAC associate curator Natalie Bray. "The works in 'Transformed' investigate the physical potential of mundane and familiar items to become art objects that transcend their former roles in everyday life." Bray curated the exhibition, which is culminating after more than a year of preparation. "I'm grateful for the opportunity to work with artists whose work I've admired for a long time."
"Transformed" features works by:
Matt Calderwood • YaYa Chou • Tim DeVoe • Tara Donovan • Felix Gonzalez-Torres
Tom Friedman • Robert Lazzarini • Steven Siegel • Yuken Teruya • Shirley Tse
Fischli & Weiss • Rachel Perry Welty
One of the more notable artists in the show is Tara Donovan, who earned her MFA at Virginia Commonwealth University in 1999. Her work, "Controlled Caging," relies on the traction between stacked wooden toothpicks to create a self-sustaining cube shape that is 33" x 30" x 30". Yuken Teruya, a Japanese artist working in Brooklyn, New York, creates delicate tree branches cut out of toilet paper rolls and assembles them on the wall like a miniature forest.