May 18 - June 22, 2012
Wasmer Art Gallery - Curated by Jade Dellinger
Perhaps best known for experimental work with John Cage and on-going sonic explorations with Pauline Oliveros, Stephen Vitiello and Tony Conrad, New York artist Andrew Deutsch identifies himself as a composer, graphic artist and video-maker – while, as this group exhibition demonstrates, “collaboration” is also quite integral to his practice.
“PolyVectral is my neologism,” as Andrew Deutsch explains. “In my life, I have had many artistic carriers. I’ve had some partners (like my wife Jennifer Dworak), some mentors (like Peer Bode), some waves (like Pauline Oliveros), some lightning rods (like Tony Conrad), some vanishing (like Tetsu Inoue), some dopants (like John Cage), some shaman (like Ann Hamilton), some catalysts (like Stephen Vitiello and Jade Dellinger), some long time friends (like Don Metz), and some new friends (like Yoya Uta), and some strangers (like the participants in The First Line).” According to Deutsch, “All of the works exhibited here at FGCU took place between 1995 and 2011, and almost all of them are on going (in one-way, two- or three-...)” As Jade Dellinger points out, “While most of Andrew’s ‘carriers’ or collaborators and the work they’ve produced together or inspired are represented in this exhibition at FGCU, the central component is The First Line (Sounds for Drawing) – an interactive installation by Andrew Deutsch and MacArthur ‘Genius Award’ Fellow Ann Hamilton.” The culmination of a decade-long exchange between the two artists; a forum for public participation; and an experimental drawing project, The First Line (Sounds for Drawing) was initially conceived for the Burchfield-Penney Art Center at Buffalo State College (and was most recently presented at The Tampa Museum of Art and Cuchifritos Art Space in NYC).
“Inspired by an observation Ann Hamilton made that the soothing, sweeping sounds of her pencil and hand moving across the surface of the paper while drawing seemed akin to the lyrical cadences of overlapping whispering voices, Andrew Deutsch positioned microphones close to her body as she chanted almost unintelligibly and drew the graphite work exhibited above the drafting table.” According to Dellinger: “Now the focus of this interactive kiosk, the original recordings were filtered and remixed to create soundtracks for drawing. Intended to function as a richly immersive experience, The First Line (Sounds for Drawing) encourages visitors to take a ‘hands-on’ role by contributing a drawing in response to a series of audio selections.”
As Andrew Deutsch adds: “I decided long ago that art would never make me miserable, and part of not being miserable is sharing… This is both the impetus for the wide-ranging or ‘polyvectral’ directions my work has taken over the years, and for this exhibition in Ft. Myers, Florida.”
About the ARTIST:
Andrew Deutsch (b.1968) received his BFA in Video Art and Printmaking from Alfred University in 1990. He obtained his MFA in Integrated Electronic Art from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1994. Since 1998, Deutsch has released over 30 CDs of solo electronic music on his Magic If Recordings. Deutsch's "The Sun" was listed as "Best of 2005 in Music" by Artforum Magazine. One of Deutsch’s most recent video projects "Eye Piece", which incorporates hand-rendered 16mm film components, was exhibited in the 9th Biennial of the Moving Image, Center pour L'Image, Contemporaine Saint-Gervais, Geneva, and his video piece "Winter Wind" was featured in the Museum of Modern Art exhibition "Looking at Music". He has collaborated with various artists including: Tetsu Inoue, Pauline Oliveros, Ann Hamilton, Joseph Nechvatal and Stephen Vitiello. His collaborative piece "Empty Words 4" with John Cage and Yvar Mikshoff has been accepted into the limited archives of the John Cage Trust. Andrew Deutsch is a member of the Institute for Electronic Art at Alfred University, the Pauline Oliveros Foundation Board of Advisors, and is a former member of the Pauline Oliveros Foundation Board of Directors (1999 - 2001).
About the CURATOR:
Jade Dellinger is an Independent Curator collaborating regularly with the Contemporary Art Museum at the University of South Florida and the Tampa Museum of Art. In 1994, he invited artist Doug Aitken to present his first site-specific video installation "I'd Die for You" at the Pasco Art Center in Holiday, Florida. He curated Maurizio Cattelan’s U.S. museum debut "Choose Your Destination: How to Get a Museum-Paid Vacation" in 1995, and organized the collaborative "Keith Edmier & Evel Knievel" project in 1997 at the USF CAM. With USF CAM Director Margaret Miller, Dellinger co-curated "[re]mediation: The Digital in Contemporary American Printmaking" (the official U.S. participation in the 22nd International Biennal of Graphic Art in Ljubljana, Slovenia). In the interim, Dellinger has curated major solo museum shows for Allan McCollum, Lucy Orta, Atelier Van Lieshout, Carlos Amorales, Janaina Tschäpe, Keith Haring, Ann Hamilton & Andrew Deutsch, The Art Guys and others. He has contributed to numerous exhibition catalogs and publications including Flash Art International, Art Papers, Art Lies, Guitar Aficionado and Maurizio Cattelan’s Permanent Food, and co-authored the book, Are We Not Men? We Are DEVO! (SAF Publishing Ltd./UK, 2003/2008), which traces the history of the seminal 1980's New Wave band.
