Last week I had the pleasure of visiting two excellent exhibitions at the Gladstone and Paula Cooper galleries:
Matthew Barney’s Facility of DECLINE was originally exhibited in 1991, but it has been reconstructed for display at the 24th St. Gladstone Gallery this month. I had to read deep into the accompanying text available at the front desk before understanding Barney’s strange vision. Apparently, this art show is an exploration of different physical and spiritual qualities of the human body and self. Barney illustrates two opposing forces in human psychology by juxtaposing legendary American football player Jim Otto’s viril explosiveness with Harry Houdini’s controlled, measured escapism. Facility of DECLINE also delves into themes of vulnerability, the “porous” nature of human anatomy, and penetration. Overall I found the art on display to be quite shocking and somewhat repulsive. Although I appreciated the underlying motives of this exhibition, I was frankly very uncomfortable throughout. There is something deeply disturbing about the crudeness of the materials and the forms in Facility of DECLINE. The show is very good, but not exactly fun or “enjoyable.”
However, my favorite of the two exhibitions was Paul Pfeiffer’s “Three Figures in a Room.” Watching the two sound engineers work to meticulously create a soundtrack of punches, breaths, and steps matching the fight was absolutely incredible. In the end, the sounds produced by these two experts serve to highlight the impeccable artistry behind boxing. Three Figures in a Room is specific and simple, but it is remarkably effective. I sat and watched for over an hour.