What if, rather than wiping the space clean and providing a blank slate, a gallery exhibition bore evidence of the shows and projects that came before it? That seems to be the question that drives Toronto-based artist Nestor Krüger’s most recent body of work at Goodwater. Titled “Geezus,” the solo show uses ephemera of the exhibition-making process as central materials in a sculptural installation that transforms the east-end gallery space in subtle ways.
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Nestor Krüger “Geezus” 2009 Installation view |
Known for his conceptually driven and often site-specific interventions, Krüger’s most recent work was inspired by the gallery’s old exhibition mailers and invitations, which the artist completely covered with black gloss rust paint, obliterating the flyers’ information (and utilitarian purpose) and transforming them into minimalist sculptural objects. Rather than being mailed out, the invitations-turned-sculptures are mounted on one gallery wall, barely hinting at their original purpose.
Further riffing on the repurposing of materials is Krüger’s subtle intervention into the gallery structure itself. Using leftover plywood from previous exhibitions, the artist cut the wood into standard paper sizes (letter and legal, for instance) and submerged them into the gallery floor’s old vent openings, as well as filling a back window in a checkerboard pattern. The gallery’s usual contents, including an old Yamaha stereo, have meanwhile been moved into the basement, leaving the space open for a self-referential reflection on the nature of exhibition-making itself. (234 Queen St E, Toronto ON)
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Nestor Krüger “Geezus” 2009 Installation view |
