NYU Steinhardt 2010 MFA Thesis Exhibition

By: James C. Kao

 

I visited the NYU Steinhardt 2010 MFA Thesis Exhibition, and my immediate impression was that there were a lot fewer artists than other degree exhibitions I have visited. Going through London’s Goldsmiths, Central Saint Martins, and Slade degree show openings was similar to going to an art fair: a space jam-packed with artists, art, and people. NYU’s MFA program accepts fewer artists, and the final exhibition was split into two parts. I went to the reception of the first part, which featured Allan Bailey, Jennie Hagevik Bringaker, Alex Jovanovich, Jiyoon Koo, Jason Martin, and Allison Somers. Overall I enjoyed the show; because there weren’t many artists, I felt less pressured to hurry through the works.

 

I caught a glimpse of Bringaker dragging a cart into her installation and performance space, which unfortunately was too crowded to enter. As such I did not have a complete opinion of it, though the premise of a time capsule performance sounded intriguing. Gallery 1 housed Koo’s various paintings. I enjoyed Koo’s bold yet purposeful strokes. There was a lack of smooth blending, which is what I usually prefer, but the layers of thick and colorful paint excited me, despite the fact that some of Koo’s paintings were of desolate areas.

 

Bringaker’s video stood out in Gallery 2 as those not drinking or talking were watching it. Indeed it had the most captivating imagery of the room. The video featured a wiggling body wearing tan colored clothing, and small dark hair-like materials appeared in the crotch area and her back. Each progressive shot showed the hair expanding and covering more parts of her body. In the next gallery, Jovanovich’s Friends series on pedestals were some of my favorite in the exhibition. The pedestals were black and in a slightly different shape than usual – the top surface was not just flat but had indents at the corners to a slightly lowered surface, and I appreciated this extra thought from the artist. The concentric circular lines in the drawings reminded me of the raked sands in a Zen garden.

 

 

 
Alex Jovanovich, Friends, 2009-2010, ink and graphite drawings on MDF pedestals, dimensions variable. Detail. Photo by JCK

 

 

Bailey’s video was housed in an anthropomorphic block. The installation was endearing as were the puppets in the video, but I stopped watching the video after a few seconds. Later I felt that perhaps I was unfair and hasty in my judgment and so returned, but still it failed to warrant my continued interest in watching the video unfold. It featured puppets in a bathroom scene, looking towards what was possibly a mirror but was actually the audience. I felt that I missed something, and I was not sure if I, or the work, caused this lack of chemistry. Martin’s Wolves/Dogs installation filled an entire room. At first I felt that the work was trying to create an experiential space through light, projections, and videos. I often find these installations to be gimmicky or too intent on eliciting sensory reactions, but I felt compelled to stay. The longer I spent in the installation the more elements I discovered, such as a sliver of a mirror and the colors and shapes formed on the wall. All these gave depth and more dimension to the room. The videos of people dressed as canines were at once humorous and slightly disquieting because even though the subjects were humans, the make-up and costumes were detailed and effective enough that the people were becoming something else.

 

 

 

 
Jason Martin, Wolves/Dogs, 2010, multi-channel video installation, dimensions variable. Photo by JCK

 

 

Since it was a small exhibition, I felt that I had breathing room and time to look at each work closer. Many of the other schools I visited functioned more like factories, churning out artists as products. Having been in London for the past two years, I was excited to see what new graduates were creating in New York. When I visited Columbia’s MFA studios several years ago, I felt that the works were mostly polished, pristine, and commercial. In contrast, in NYU 2010 MFA each work had the care and intelligence of multiple layers. I would be interested to see part two. Comparing New York to London, I could not say however if the works are any more or less interesting, or even that different.

 

NYU MFA Thesis Exhibition 2010

Part 1

April 6-19

Part 2 (featuring Sonja Engelhardt, Daniela Libertad, Joe Namy, Amelia Saul, Heather Sherman, Elaine Cameron-Weir, Gustabo Velazquez)

May 4-17

80 Washington Square East

New York, NY 10003

Take the 6 to Astor Place; the R or W to 8th Street; or the A, B, C, D, E, F, V to West 4th Street

Gallery Hours:Mon-Sat, 10-6

Gallery website: http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/steinhardt/mfa2010/artists/

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