deankessmann

The Spaces in Between

x-ray film in lightboxes, microphones, amplifier, headphones, 11 x 14 inches, 2001-3
edition 1/1 (x-rays are specific to architectural spaces in which they are exposed)

x-ray film in lightboxes, microphones, amplifier,
headphones, 11 x 14 inches, 2001-3
edition 1/1 (x-rays are specific to architectural
spaces in which they are exposed)

Read a short description of this project

The Spaces in Between

From its inception, the “white cube” has endured a multitude of invasive procedures and has been endlessly deconstructed. In order to survive and remain the most prominent location for the dissemination of contemporary art, it is necessary for artists and curators to continually reconstruct galleries in insightful, intelligent, and sensitive ways. This work is my contribution to the dialogue surrounding installation art’s site-specificity—its unique and inseparable bond to the context in which it is created and viewed. In these installations, I record the inner spaces of galleries by x-raying sections of the walls and floor. I also place microphones inside of the walls so that sounds from within and through them are amplified and may be experienced while wearing headphones. The visual and audio components document the architectural substructure of the buildings and provide testimony to artistic interventions. A fundamental component of these installations, the physical changes that are carried out within the walls, in addition to the marks left by previous artists, will linger unnoticed long after the lightboxes, microphones, and headphones are removed. This aspect of my work speaks to art’s enduring presence. It is about memory and the scars left by art—the physical marks that remain on the spaces in which it has been displayed, as well as the impressions left on our minds.