The LAB Gallery

SOUNDSTORM PART 2: DANIEL ROTHBART

admin — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:59:08 +0000

An Installation by Daniel Rothbart and Maia Anthea Marinelli

July 9-August 27th, 2010 ‘Soundstorm’, Is a kinetic installation by Daniel Rothbart and Maia Anthea Marinelli. This work explores the dialogue between art and nature, using sculptural elements that move according to the barometric pressure in New York City, at any given time. Isobars are represented by a shifting motorized web of pulleys and ropes that envelope the gallery and produce metallic noise. These sounds will be piped outside the gallery to complete the tableau vivant.

Daniel Rothbart’s work looks at the relationship between nature, urban postmodern identity and metaphysics. Rothbart holds an M.F.A. from Columbia University and won a Fulbright grant to Naples, Italy in 1990. His work can be found in public and private collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Recent projects include exhibitions at the Andrea Meislin Gallery, Exit Art and the Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art in Peekskill. His latest European exhibition took place at Galerie Depardieu in Nice in June 2010.

Maia Anthea Marinelli’s work explores themes of women in relation to their cultural environment through conceptual strategies with sculpture, land art, photography, performance and interactive installations.Marinelli holds a B.F.A. from the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence Italy, and an M.F.A. from New York University’s Interactive Telecommunications Program. Her work has been exhibited at the Biennale of Mediterranean Artists, the International Studio & Curatorial Program in New York and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Genoa, Italy.

Photos: Adam Wallace

Share now!

SOUNDSTORM PART 1: MAIA ANTHEA MARINELLI

admin — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 22:07:11 +0000

An Installation by Daniel Rothbart and Maia Anthea Marinelli

July 9-August 27th, 2010 ‘Soundstorm’, is a kinetic installation by Daniel Rothbart and Maia Anthea Marinelli. This work explores the dialogue between art and nature, using sculptural elements that move according to the barometric pressure in New York City, at any given time. Isobars are represented by a shifting motorized web of pulleys and ropes that envelope the gallery and produce metallic noise. These sounds will be piped outside the gallery to complete the tableau vivant.

Photos: Adam Wallace

Share now!

SPACE RHYTHM DRAWINGS- FLOWERS

admin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 23:44:06 +0000

A WALL AND FLOOR INSTALLATION

BY GA HAE PARK

May 14-June 4, 2010

This work consists of about 200 cut paper drawings on the floor and walls of the gallery. Park’s work fuses the raw material of music into visual, emotional and intellectual forms by drawing with cut paper, shaping, and layering positive and negative space, into rhythms. The paper is meticulously cut and composed, opened and closed, with a focus on creating lines that specify coherent patterns of light and shadows on a grid, forming a visual musical structure. In essence, the paper itself becomes the instrument that draws light into musical patterns.

Park has tried to create living forms and images of flowers with cut paper combined with color, sound and light, expressing inner rhythms with a feeling. This musical structure -living forms of the flowers, is an abstract and metaphysical realm. Music, by evoking that abstract space, inspires Park to create new spaces through her art. For Space Rhythm Drawings- Flowers, Ga Hae Park combines ” Sonatas, BWV 1030 -1035 by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Photos: Adam Wallace

Share now!

THE TRADERS’ BALL

admin — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:15:08 +0000

AN INSTALLATION BY FRED FOREST

CURATED BY ROBERT C. MORGAN

PRODUCED BY ferdinand(corte)™

June 11- July 2, 2010

With his trademark over the top irony, Forest rubs salt in the wounds of the free market banking industry, mocking their response to the financial crisis that has shaken the world. This installation will include corporate mannequins dancing the night away in The LAB and parallel scenes of jovial ignorance taking place via Second Life on large screens in the gallery. The action will take place to music by New York rapper Jamalski, who will orchestrate the movements of the dancers to a syncopated beat based on the real time fluctuation of the financial markets. To see the project’s website go to: www.thetradersball.com

This work was in conjunction with a piece based around Forest’s Second Life avatar, Ego Cyberstar, which showed at The Science Fair at Flux Factory, June 5^th- 13^th 2010.

Fred Forest is a French new media artist. He is the holder of a state doctorate in the humanities from the Sorbonne and has also taught on the faculty of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Art, Cergy-Pontoise and University of Nice Sophia Antipolis. Forest has taken part in the Biennale of Venice (1976) and the Documenta of Kassel (1977, 1987) and his work has won awards at the Bienal do São Paulo (1973) and the Festival of Electronic Arts of Locarno (1995). In 2004, Forest’s archives, including his video works, were added to the collection of the Institut National de l’Audiovisuel of France and a retrospective of his work was held at the Slought Foundation in Philadelphia in 2007. Beginning in 2008, Forest launched a new series of performances in the environment of Second Life.

Photos: Adam Wallace

Share now!

TIME-LAPSE: BACKSTAGE TRANSMISSION

admin — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:55:10 +0000

Morgan O’Hara’s Live Transmission drawings track, in real time, the vital movement of living beings, transcending both figuration and abstraction, executing a direct neural translation from one human action into another. Drawing methodically with multiple razor-sharp pencils and both hands, as time-based performance, O’Hara condenses movement into accumulations of graphite lines which combine the controlled refinement of classical drawing with the unbound sensuality of spontaneous gesture. Time-space coordinates for each drawing are described with great precision in the titles.

The source for this site-specific wall drawing was a pencil drawing done in Japan in 2001. The situation took place in Kid Ailack Hall in Tokyo where 40 performance artists were walking through their performances in a large stage area, identifying places where props were to be placed, where lighting technicians needed to place a spotlight, where and when technicians were to produce sound for each performance. O’Hara sat alone in the audience area and drew the movement of all these proceedings, tracking each person as he or she crossed and re-crossed the stage area. She made one large drawing of all observable movement for four hours in that space.

For this site, the 2001 stage-blocking drawing was photographed, downloaded into a computer, printed in sections, copied onto acetate and projected in sections onto the walls of the LAB using an overhead projector. The work progressed from left to right. Thirty volunteers from Fordham University, the School of Visual Arts, artsengine, LAB supporters, and occasional passersby assisted Morgan O’Hara with the painting. The modus operandi was to paint black the spaces between the lines, allowing the lines to emerge on their own from the white walls.

A site-specific wall drawing is a drawing which is done specifically for a particular space. Concept, scale, proportion and architectural elements must all be taken under careful consideration. This particular drawing was selected by O’Hara from among many possibilities as the best one for this particular space. In the nearby theatre district of New York as well as in the many concert halls not far from the Roger Smith Hotel, preparations for performance are taking place every day. It is hoped that this drawing will call attention to the many unnoticed backstage activities which support the performing arts.

Share now!

A SPECTRUM OF JEWELS

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 20:21:26 +0000

March 5-26th, 2010, New York City The Lab (for Installation and Performance Art) is pleased to announce the upcoming installation A Spectrum of Jewels by San Diego based artist/poet/mathematician Kaz Maslanka.
A Spectrum Of Jewels will feature what Maslanka calls a Dodecaorthogonal Space Poem. This type of mathematical poem is constructed with twelve orthogonal space poems arranged contiguously within a Cartesian coordinate system. Orthogonal space poems are always in the form of A equals B multiplied by C. What is different in this new work is that one of the variables in each poem is a fabricated word whose meaning comes from the mathematical operation applied to the other two variables (words). The words were carefully chosen to point to a spectrum inspired by Zen teachings. Thus, the aesthetic value of the piece is derived from visualizing the meaning of all the concepts spread throughout the entire three dimensional space.
The following statements are to help navigate the installation:
The yellow ball is the point of origin for the entire system. The green balls are points in space which represent the meaning of a concept which lies on one of the word axes. A word axis is a one dimensional line drawn between two concepts in space. In a three dimensional space you may have three word axes. The three word axes in this installation are Emptiness/Thinking, Existence/Non-existence and Monasticism/Urbanity. The red balls are points in space to delineate the coordinate pairs for which the orthogonal space poem starts. The poem lies on the planer space that lies between the red ball, the two adjacent green balls and the yellow ball. For a better understanding of visualizing these poems you may want to Google verbogeometry and Orthogonal Space Poem.
The twelve orthogonal space poems are:
Emptiness times Urbanity = Socrastival
Emptiness times Monasticism = Apecksuval
Emptiness times Existence = Doalldoxuval
Emptiness times Non-existence = Nonalldoxuval
Thinking times Urbanity = Selcrasaval
Thinking times Monasticism = Taoodoxuval
Thinking times Existence = Wastconditival
Thinking times Non-existence = Dreemholeval
Existence times Urbanity = Natucrasaval
Existence times Monasticism = Onkeval
Non-existence times Urbanity = Boidasval
Non-existence times Monasticism = Onkeval

Photos: Adam Wallace

Share now!

LA INCUBADORA

admin — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:53:29 +0000

A SCULPTURE INSTALLATION BY GRIMANESA AMORÓS

January 14 – February 10, 2010

Wednesday, December 16, 2009 The LAB (for installation + performance art) in association with SLAG Gallery, has been converted by Grimanesa Amorós into ”LA INCUBADORA”, which will be featuring “You Cannot Feel It…I Wish You Could” a sculpture installation arising out of her personal experiences during and immediately following her pregnancy with her daughter Shammiel. The installation explores the interplay between biology and society and particularly the concept of male pregnancy.

“During my pregnancy with my daughter, and afterwards when I was nursing her, I noticed how curious her father was about my experiences,” recalls Amorós. “I wanted to create a piece around motherhood, and the unbridgeable gulf between the male and female bodies, specifically in the area of reproduction. Then I began to imagine ways in which that gulf might be bridged. I am re-envisioning The Lab Gallery as a warm human incubator, in contrast to the cold exterior of Manhattan, yet concurrently reflecting its sterility. This is a new way to present “You Cannot Feel It…I Wish You Could” that works with my current sensibilities while still staying true to the original sculptures.”

The installation is comprised of eleven “clones” of a new kind of human body: a pregnant female torso with the same male head attached to each of them. The casts were taken from a mold made from the artist’s body one week before she gave birth to her daughter. The floor beneath and around the body-casts is covered with soft, pale sand referencing the earth as a foundation for biological manipulation.

The lighting in the space and the music, a collaboration with composer Meshell Ndegeocello, who created a piece of music made specifically for the installation, reinforces the magical quality that many of us feel when confronting the wonders (or monsters?) of modern science.

Grimanesa Amorós is an interdisciplinary artist with diverse interests in the fields of social history, scientific research and critical theory, which have greatly influenced her work. She often makes use of sculpture, video, and lighting to create works that illuminate our notions of personal identity and community. Amorós utilizes her art as an agent for empowerment to involve viewers from all different backgrounds and communities. She was born in Lima. Lives and works in New York City and Peru.

Photos: Amorós Studio

For more information or to schedule an interview with the artist or for an invitation to the opening night dinner please contact Danika Druttman at ddruttman@rogersmith.com or call (212) 339-2092.

THE LAB (for installation + performance art) is a New York based, converted storefront turned fishbowl producing 20+ fast paced performance art and installation exhibitions annually. Aimed at the furious midtown foot traffic, THE LAB’s programming is designed to confront modern relationships between art and audience and seeks to force interaction between high energy, “outrospective” exhibitions and nearly 25,000 daily passersby. For more information, call 212-339-2092, or email rogersmitharts@rogersmith.com. www.thelabgallery.com

SLAG Gallery specializes in contemporary Eastern European art, the gallery has begun featuring works by international artists in all media, by owner and director Irina Protopopescu. www.slaggallery.com email info@slaggallery.com

PRESS:

http://www.style1media.com/100115_lab.html

http://www.elementalled.com/blog/diy/leds-light-up-a-midtown-gallery/

http://elcomercio.pe/impresa/notas/hombre-estado-gestacion/20100117/399079

http://www.sawdustsoup.com/profiles/blogs/leds-light-up-a-midtown

http://chelseanow.com/articles/2010/02/12/perspectives/opinion/doc4b7596c606acc950717039.txt

http://www.impre.com/laopinion/entretenimiento/2010/1/17/la-maternidad-percibida-por-gr-168918-1.html

http://blogs.eluniversal.com/2010/01/31/latie_blog_el-vaquero-menos-aut_31A3372453.shtml

http://www.aguasdigital.com/tendencias/leer.php?idnota=2814862&efenew=1

http://bookishnyc.typepad.com/bookish_nyc/2010/01/near-my-office-.html

http://www.ntn24.com/content/exposicion-aborda-la-maternidad-e-idea-hombre-pueda-dar-a-luz

http://www.publimetro.com.mx/entretener/la-maternidad-centra-la-nueva-instalacion-en-nueva-york-de-la-artista-peruana-grimanesa-amoros/ejan!1176376/

http://www.univision.com/contentroot/wirefeeds/91entrenimiento/8084313.shtml

http://www.wunitv.com/150913-La-maternidad-centra-la-nueva-instalación-en-Nueva-York-de-la-artista-peruana-Grimanesa-Amorós.html

http://www.tvkinc.com/150913-La-maternidad-centra-la-nueva-instalación-en-Nueva-York-de-la-artista-peruana-Grimanesa-Amorós.html?lm=true

http://orlando.elsentinel.com/vida/oes-14627531jan14,0,4238753.story

http://www.elperiodicodemexico.com/nota.php?id=334809

http://noticias.terra.es/2010/genteycultura/0115/actualidad/la-maternidad-centra-la-nueva-instalacion-en-nueva-york-de-la-artista-peruana-grimanesa-amoros.aspx

http://www.ntn24.com/content/exposicion-aborda-la-maternidad-e-idea-hombre-pueda-dar-a-luz

http://www.donrelyea.com/cgi-bin/blosxom.cgi/2010/02/01#la_incubadora_amoros

http://www.emol.com/noticias/magazine/detalle/detallenoticias.asp?idnoticia=394016#

http://www.diariodenavarra.es/actualidad/fotosdeldia.asp?st=&dia=20100115&nF=6&fot=2010011508353591

http://www3.timeoutny.com/newyork/tonyblog/2010/05/relax-here-chamber-music-series-at-the-roger-smith-hotel/#ixzz0p4oroZo8

Share now!

Trailer Video: San Antonio Casts a Spell

admin — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:48:11 +0000

Potter-Belmar Labs set up a temporary studio in a little shed in New York/San Antonio-based artist Franco Mondini-Ruiz’s backyard during one of his infamous parties, and asked San Antonians to cast spells for the world at-large. “San Antonio Casts a Spell” is a video installation that presents these incantations, delivering a little South Texan hoodoo to the masses.

“San Antonio Casts a Spell” will include eight videos presented in the windows of The LAB (for installation + performance art). Visitors will be able to call a special toll-free number 866.820.5327 and hear specific instructions for each spell, while watching videos of the spells being cast, including Finding Lost Things, Sleep Deserved and Deep, Clear Transmissions, and more.

Share now!

40 Weeks Part II

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:54:28 +0000

October 9-13, 2009
A Performance Installation by Kata Mejía

Forty Weeks is a performance-installation that celebrates the miracle of life and the act of giving birth. It represents the time a mother carries her child during pregnancy and explores various aspects of motherhood including nurturing, the relationship between mother and child, and the intimacy of breast feeding. The artist uses repetition to present the first stages of life as an accumulation of time and a period of growth.

KATA MEJIA is a performance artist with a background in painting and dance who lives and works in Philadelphia, USA. She graduated from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a Masters degree in Performance in 2004. She received her BFA from Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Medellin. She has been awarded several grants and scholarships, including the James Nelson Raymond Fellowship in 2004, the Trustee Scholarship from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago, a Colombian Government Scholarship for Graduate Studies abroad, and a Graduate Studies Scholarship from Universidad Nacional de Colombia in 2002. Kata Mejía received a 2009 Fellowship from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
www.katamejia.com