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Anne Herron Past Exhibition

 

Wunderkammer: Wonderworks
September 6 - October 21, 2000

Geraldine Erman and Eve Andrée Laramée
guest curators

Curatorial Statement
Exhibition Checklist
Gallery Location




Curatorial Statement

"The first of all passions is wonder", wrote Descartes in 1649. Marvels, oddities, curiosities and anomalies of nature and culture continue to engender a sense of wonder. The historical wunderkammer or cabinets of curiosity have mutually fascinated us for a number of years.

Grotesque medical anomalies, uncanny biological oddities, zoological rarities, and extraordinary geological specimens were displayed in profuse abundance, side-by-side with unusual, rare, and exquisitely crafted works of art. The resonance of proximity and juxtaposition created a shifting array of associations and speculations. These polymorphic pre-Enlightenment collections were assembled before more scientific taxonomy and scholarly specialization rationalized the study and classification of objects. The multi-dimensional and non-hierarchical nature of the wunderkammer has many parallels in contemporary life, most notably in networking technology.

Wunderkammer: Wonderworks is a contemporary interpretation of the historical wunderkammer. We solicited submissions of relevant artworks as well as personal collections. Our sense of wonder, surprise, and delight in encountering and selecting these works is reflected in the surprising juxtapositions of the installation. By re-examining the pre-modern model of the wunderkammer, we hope to shed some light on artists' post-modern concerns with collecting, indexing and archiving the Wonderful.

Geraldine Erman and Eve Andrée Laramée
Brooklyn, NY
August, 2000



Exhibition Checklist

All dimensions are in inches, height x width x depth. Unless otherwise noted, works are from the collection of the artist.

Ray Abeyta
His virtuoso paintings include the depiction of a contemporary Latino cabinet of curiosities.

Distilacion, 1998
Oil on linen, 38 x 46


Ray Abeyta's

Bodegon Curioso, 2000
Oil on linen, 42 x 56


Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock
Represented by a comprehensive selection of photographic and photo-collage works and artists' books examining unusual subjects such as mortuary studies and autopsy tools.

Artist's Books, 1986-2000
Mixed media, varying dimensions


Autopsy Tools: Satterlee Bone Saw, Virchow Skull Breaker, Snips, Postmortem Hammer, Curved Needle, Rib Shears, Retractor, 1999
Severium-toned gelatin silver prints, each 14 x 11


Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock
Facial Reconstructive Surgery, 1999
Severium-toned gelatin silver prints, 13 ¼ x 11 ¼


Core Samples, 2000
Ink jet prints, wood, melamine, 151 x 1 5/8 x 1


Inverse Relationships, 2000
Magazines, J.Crew catalogues, matte medium, 36 x 50 ¼


John Boone
Exhibiting photo documentation of a project from Germany entitled "Just Wondering."

Just Wondering, 1999
Photograph, 36 ½ x 54 ½


Ralph M. Bourque, II
Shares his remarkably obsessive collection of Stevie Nicks memorabilia consisting of objects, photos, and ephemera gathered over a twenty-year period.

Collection of Stevie Nicks Memorabilia, 1974 – 2000


Ralph Bourque's 'Collection of Stevie Nicks Memorabilia
Carrie Cooperider
Presenting a sculpture incorporating her grandmother's European toilet paper samples.

The Katherine Evans Cooperider European Toilet Paper Collection (from the Ethel L. Mumma European Wing of The Mundaneum/World Museum), 1995
Wooden case with map and three frames displaying toilet paper collection, 13 x 20 x 29 ½


Carrie Cooperider
Josh Dorman
Exhibiting a fifteen-year accumulation of his own nail clippings.

Collection of Nail Clippings, 1984 – 2000


Takuji Hamanaka
Whose paintings portray a complex network of biomorphic structures.

Untitled, 1997
Acrylic on paper, 60 x 47


Takuji Hamanaka

Untitled, 1997
Acrylic on paper, 59 ¾ x 46 ½


Annie Herron
Displaying her dazzling collection of hundreds of earrings, a compendium of many decades worth of costume splendor.

Collection of earrings, 1967-2000


Annie Herron's 'Collection of Earrings'

Patrick Jacobs
Whose dioramas in the gallery's walls depicting subterranean life are based on the Ortho Pesticide Company's manual.

Untitled #10 (from the series The Ortho Rooms), 2000
Paper, paint, concrete, wood, glue, lighting, 15 x 20 (inside wall)


Patrick Jacobs

Untitled #11 - 13 (from the series The Ortho Rooms), 2000
Paper, paint, wood, concrete, mirrors, glue, lighting, 10 x 15


Kristy Knight
Whose glassine paper automaton eerily levitates in the main gallery space.

When they removed..., 1995
Glassine, monofilament, motor, 20 x 72 x 24


Kristy Knight's 'When they removed...'
Hide, 1998
Skinned chair (Upholstery fabric, felt and wood), 88 x 60


Laura Larson
Exhibiting a series of black and white photographs documenting butterfly specimens.

Untitled #12,7,4,3,1,9 1995
Gelatin silver prints, Each: 16 x 20


Laura Larson
Miranda Maher
Who maps her dreams on a thirteen-foot paper river.

River & All Remembered Dreams, 1997
Xerox and Ink on Kita Kata Paper, 96 x 164


Tears Shed at an Anonymous Man's Funeral, 1992
Mixed Media, 10" x 15"


Miranda Maher

 

Gabriela Micchia
Bizarre and colorful sculptures suggest a new breed of recombinant body parts.

Defective Rarities, 1999 - 2000
Mixed media, varying dimensions

 


Gabriela Micchia's 'Defective Rarities

Antonella Piemontese
Whose exquisitely crafted "Personal Safety Wardrobe" includes wearable and non-wearable apparel forms, expressing "survival, perception, and categorization."

Moldy Ravioli, 1997
Acrylic on stuffed fabric, string, plastic tray, 10 ½ x 7 ½ x 1


Antonella Piemontese

Rolled Cheese, 1995
Ink on stuffed fabric, twine, 81 x 5 x 5


Strike Through Protection, 1998
Ink on cotton, 27 x 14 x 5 ½


Minimal Exposure Incident, 1998
Ink on cotton, 33 ½ x 25 ½ x 5


Permissible Exposure Limit, 1998
Ink on cotton, 41 ½ x 19 x 5


Lateral Safety Shoulder Guard, 1998
Ink on cotton, 11 x 27 x 7


Incoming Thought Protection, 1998
Ink on cotton, 12 x 8 x 7 ½


Cross Contamination Hood, 1998
Ink on cotton, 12 x 8 ½ x 7


Aged Source (bundle), 1994
Ink on stuffed linen, string, twine, 50 x 5 x 3


Aged Source (describe), 1994
Ink on stuffed linen, string, 46 x 1 ½ x 1 ½


Tied Dynamite, 1994
Ink on stuffed linen, twine, 24 x 2 ½ x 2 ½


Knotted Tool, 1997
Ink on stuffed linen, string, 22 x 10 x 2 ½


Appendage Strap, 1998
Ink on linen, 34 x 6 x 5


Jeffrey Schiff
Who will present a selection of sculptures in the Rotunda Project Room inspired by the Encyclopedias of Diderot.

from L'ENCYCLOPÉDIE: miroitier, 1998
Mixed media (wood, glass, etc.), dimensions variable


Jeffrey Schiff
from L'ENCYCLOPÉDIE: miroitier, 1998
Digital C-print, 20 x 16


Transparency #1-4, 1996-8
Glass, 28 ½ x 17 x 6 ½;32 x 11 x 5; 41 x 8 x 4 ½;18 x 16 x 8
Lampwork by Sally Prasch


Bill Schuck
Whose "Disarticulated Bird," is a feather-by-feather re-presentation of a natural specimen.

Found; Finch, 1999
Feathers, wool felt, aluminum, glass, 26 x 34 x ¾


Howard Schwartzberg
Whose works on paper are the amazing results of a collaboration between worms and the artist.

Spiral Worms 1 - 6, 1999
Bloodworms on paper, each: 14 ½ x 11 ¼


Howard Schwartzberg

Karen Shaw
Displaying her stupendous collection of globes.

Collection of globes, 1986-2000


Deborah Simon
Exhibiting highly crafted paintings that illustrate idiosyncratic views of mythic deities.

God is Dead: Ganesha, 1999
Oil on wood, 11 x 12


Deborah Simon's 'God is Dead, Ganesha'
God is Dead: Odin and Sleipnir, 1999
Oil on wood, 13 x 15


God is Dead: Yamantaka, 2000
Oil on wood, 42 x 48


Rodger Stevens
Displaying a sample of his collection of vibrant and inventive stickers collected from the streets of New York.

Peeled From the Street #7, 8, 10, 12, 2000
Stickers, labels, etc. mounted on board, 30 x 40; 25 x 41; 20 x 30; 30 x 30


Mary Temple
Whose sculptural installation "One Hundred Miniature Cakes" combines her sophisticated painterly skills with the craft of cake decoration.

100 Cakes, 1999
Cardboard, Styrofoam, modeling paste, acrylic paint, polyester spackle, acrylic gel medium, handmade paper, confectioners sugar, dimensions variable


Mary Temple
Penelope Umbrico
Whose photographic assemblages transform mundane consumer goods into compelling visual confections.

Untitled (Ends of Things), 1995-7
C-prints and plexi glass, each panel: 14 x 60


Joanne Ungar
Exhibiting an intriguing crystalline canoe paddle etched with a zoological illustration.

Leech Paddle, 1999
Polyester Resin and Ink, 57 x 7 x 1 ½


Joanne Ungar

Jeffrey Wyckoff
Exhibiting a series of anatomical painted charts and a collection of photo-enhanced glass slides and lab dishes.

Frog, 1998
Pigment on paper with wood support, 76 x 42 ½


Jeffrey Wyckoff

Cat, 1999
Pigment on paper with wood support, 76 x 42 ½


Double Portrait Series:
Lab Techs 1-6,
1999
Places We Live 1-6, 2000
Photo-transfer on petri dishes with agar and bacteria, each: 100mm diam.


Examination of Line and Structure, 1995
Female Nude, 1995
Examination of Reproduction, 1996
Examination of Objects, 1995
Each: Photo-transfer on 20 microscope slides in slide folder, 14 x 17


Body Language, 1994
Photo–transfer on 80 microscope slides in slide box, 1 x 14 x 12


Pablo Ellicott Yglesias
Whose brilliantly beaded forms are inspired by Santeria religious practice.

The Hunter and the Hunted: Babalu/AIDS, 1994
Taxidermy form, beads, shells, plaque, 20 x 14 x 19


Indian/Babalu, 1997
Beads, plaster, crutch, plastic heart, 42 x 18 x 14


Planter/Chango, 1995
Beads, plaster, cigars, bottles, 16 x 35 x 35


Puritan/Oya, 1995
Beads, plaster, broom, 25 x 22 x 22


Pablo Ellicott Yglesias

Witch/Legba, 1995
Beads, plaster, cardboard, feathers, 27 x 24 x 24


Daniel Zeller
Represented by his finely wrought pencil drawings that describe fragments of imaginary micro and macrocosmic worlds.

Coupling II, 1998
Graphite on paper, 12 ½ x 10


Daniel Zeller

Terminal I, 1997
Graphite on paper, 12 ½ x 10


Receptacle, 1998
Graphite on paper, 15 x 12 ½


Tubeshank, 1998
Graphite on paper, 12 ½ x 10


Grid, 1999
Graphite on paper, 13 ¾ x 11


Spasm, 1999
Graphite on paper, 13 ½ x 10 ½


Hamlet, 2000
Graphite on paper, 11 ½ x 9


Fieldwork, 2000
Graphite on paper, 11 ½ x 9


Local Storage, 2000
Graphite on paper, 14 x 11



The Rotunda Gallery gratefully acknowledges the 1999 Leadership Gift of Richard B. Fisher.

The Rotunda Gallery is grateful for the generous support of our exhibition and education programs from the Sally and Milton Avery Foundation, Chase Manhattan Bank Foundation, Con Edison, the Cowles Charitable Trust, Forest City Ratner Companies, the Greenwall Foundation, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, and the New York Community Trust, as well as numerous individuals.

Programs are made possible in part by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs with support from the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President and the Brooklyn Delegation to the New York City Council, the New York State Council on the Arts and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

The Rotunda Gallery is a project of BRIC/Brooklyn Information & Culture, Nanette Rainone, president.



Gallery Location
LOCATION: 33 Clinton Street in Downtown Brooklyn
PHONE: 718-875-4047
HOURS: Tuesday-Friday / noon-5pm
Saturday / 11am-4pm
SUBWAY: A, C trains to High Street
2, 3, 4, 5 trains to Borough Hall