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Curated by Alyson Baker, this exhibition examines the ways in which organic products
and systems are manipulated through scientific practice, mediated by marketing
strategies, effected by human use of natural resources, and augmented by corporate
production and industrial innovation.
Some of the works in the exhibition address these themes through poetic and symbolic
means - such as Elaine Gan's carefully constructed, aluminum and rubber structure
that appears to protect and support three cherry trees while responding to their
growth, evolving and changing form as the trees flower and then gain foliage
during the course of the exhibition. Another example is Hope Ginsburg's iconic
20 foot tall, two-dimensional rendition of the Jolly Green Giant that becomes
a symbol of contemporary agricultural technologies - embodying both the current
mass production 'food-science' system and the power required to revolutionize
the food industry.
Catarina Leitão's signs, posted at various points around the Park, advertise
expertly engineered products that make the outdoor experience safer, more convenient
and comfortable or allow us to blend in and function more efficiently in the
wild, addressing our conflicting desires to commune with nature while being protected
from natural elements. In other installations, like Pam Lin's garden, nature
is called into the service of language as flowering plants spell "cool white" to
accompany the flag above them with the words "or daylight."
Other works, like Mark Dion's East River Biological Field Station, Patrick
Armacost's Stacked Fluvial System, and Lisi Raskin's Portal 3 use
the visual vocabulary and practices of science to create works that function
as laboratories for observation, experimentation and research.
Other works directly infuse organic materials with high tech systems like the
surface of Ethan Long's 8 by 8 foot packed earth cube that is dotted with light
from fiber optic cables. Another elaborately engineered work is John Stoney's
scale recreation of Old Faithful - a constructed system that mimics the world
famous tourist attraction in Yellowstone National Park.
Additional works include Mitch Miller's sculptural version of an oil well constructed
of salvaged wood and children's toys and Michael Joo's presention of a photo-based
work of the Alaskan Pipeline on a 10 x 28 foot billboard that spans the entryway
to the Park.
