Curated
by Fernanda Arruda and Michael Clifton
Exhibition
Dates: April 8 – July 3, 2004
SCREAM addresses a
diversity of horrors influencing today’s contemporary artists – from Slasher
films and Halloween traditions to the howl of Black Metal.
Matt
Greene, Banks Violette and Bjarne Melgaard comb the dark landscapes of Goth,
Black Metal and Sadomasochism to frame present-day horrors. For David Altmejd and Dora Longo Bahia, dread resides
in the reification of things past as Werewolf heads and ghostly shadows occupy
sculpture and photograph. Social rituals and the ornamental kitsch of Halloween
provide fodder for Cameron Jamie and Amy Sarkisian.
Several
artists draw upon particular moments and filmic devices common to the horror
movie genre. Sue de Beer, Banks Violette and Michael Wetzel share an
interest in how these filmmakers employ lighting, special effects and/or
storyline to create unease in viewers. Not unlike Slasher film directors who
conjure fear through self-contradiction, Brock Enright relies on
“misunderstanding of image and information” to fabricate terror in his ongoing
‘extreme kidnapping’ project.
To offer further insight
we invited 10 writers to contribute essays on the participating artists. Their
texts, along with abbreviated artist biographies and artwork images supplied by
the artists, accompany the exhibition in the guise of a catalog mock-up. In
this respect, SCREAM exists a scab on the curatorial framework of Cream projects by Phaidon and remains a
crusty, ephemeral proposal.
Lastly,
instead of taking stabs at an artist’s practice by inscribing ‘source artist’
relationships, we asked them to select scary movies as a way to contextualize
their individual ties to horror. A mute
discussion carries out on screen.
10 Artists: David Altmejd, Dora
Longo Bahia, Sue de Beer, Brock Enright, Matt Greene, Cameron Jamie, Bjarne Melgaard, Amy Sarkisian, Banks Violette, Michael Wetzel.
10 Writers: Alissa Bennett,
Johanna Burton, Chivas Clem, Meghan Dailey, Massimiliano Gioni, Jens Hoffmann,
Brooke Minto, Brian Sholis, Ali Subotnick and Liz Thomas.
10 Scary Movies: Eyes Without a Face (Michael Wetzel); Ginger Snaps (Sue de
Beer); Irreversible (Bjarne
Melgaard); Martin (Banks Violette); Midnight I Will Take Your Soul (Dora
Longo Bahia); Phantasm (Matt Greene);
Phantom of the Opera (Amy Sarkisian);
Possession (David Altmejd); Thundercrack! (Cameron Jamie); Trouble
Every Day (Brock Enright). Visitors
can access movie titles from a video library for onsite viewings.
Opening Thursday, April 8,
2004 from 7-10pm. The show will run through July 3. The Moore Space is open
Friday 10 am – 2 pm and Saturday 10 am –5 pm, and by appointment, 305-438-1163.
This is a traveling exhibition originally presented at Anton Kern Gallery, New
York. The Moore Space's Exhibition Program is generously funded by Rosa and Carlos
de la Cruz and Craig Robins.
For further information
and images, please contact Silvia Karman Cubina at tel 305.438.1163, fax
305.573.8117 or email: silvia@themoorespace.org.