Wednesday, April 30, 2008
I-95.08
Here’s what happens on Sunday, May 4 2008 at Front and Mifflin Sts. in Philadelphia, PA. There’s 231 photographs under I-95 from 1PM to 4PM. All of the photos will be up at 1PM.
There’s photos for sale at the table, and maps and photo lists, golf pencils, water and pretzels. Color copies are 5 dollars each, please ask for them by number. Every photo in the show has a number written on the ground in front of the image. If you want to buy a copy, tell the people at the table the number and they’ll get it for you. Working at the table will be Laura, Masha, Charday and Savannah.
Savannah: #1 Sister of all time!
Charday: play niece
Laura: intern from Uarts
Masha: intern from Moore
At 4 when the show is over people are welcome to take the photos from the pilasters. There’s adhesive backing on the photos, so if you think you want to take one bring saran wrap or paper to put on the back. And bring some for other people, too.
For folks who are just wandering in who or don’t know about the maps and photos for sale at the table, please tell them how the show works.
---------
After the I-95 show two years ago, right after I was in the Whitney biennial, I felt that some people didn’t understand that the show wasn’t a “give away,” but rather it’s just that when the show is done the photos are left to the elements and people can take them if they want. I had some consternation regarding how I saw the taking of the photos after the show was done. I did want people to take them if they wanted them… but I wanted someone to take them on the basis of their engagement with the show, not on the promise of a piece of the show having monetary value. However, after that first year when the perceived worth of my photos shifted, I found that when I stepped back I really didn’t care what happened to the photos when it was done, just like from the start. If someone takes a photo it implies engagement, regardless of reason. And of course money is a valid reason… what the hell was I thinking? When it’s over, it’s over, and anything can happen with the images.
There have been very few changes since the project began and most of them were a result of rehashing how the show went the year before and then making minor shifts… like an addition of an hour, it use to be 1pm to 3pm, now it’s 1pm to 4pm. But when I started to sell ink-jet prints, I knew right away that I wanted to make higher quality prints for 95 if I could afford it and decided to make the same archival prints that I sell in the gallery to be laminated for 95. So the photos in the show this year are all archival ink-jet prints, which sell for 750 bucks at my NY gallery. And all but 3 of the 231 images are printed identically to the archival ink-jets that I sell. (I had to settle for a lower res with 3 because I didn’t have the time to rescan) Except, of course, the I-95 photos are laminated with an adhesive backing. When I began this project the images didn’t have monetary value in the art market, now it’s 173,250.00 dollars worth of photos that people can take. But there's no true shift in the worth… it’s the same as it was in the beginning and will be the same at the end; color copies or ink-jets, it’s the complete installation that’s the work and I’m happy to have the pieces of it off in the world, the prints and the copies and the web images and the vinyl and the slide shows.
In some ways, the putting up the images and then letting go of them is how it is with the weather for the day of the show… I can prepare all year for this show but it’s possible that it could rain. And while the installation goes up unless there’s a nuclear holocaust, rain makes putting up the show more difficult and means that a few images would be unable to adhere to the pillars. Too bad, but that’s what this show is. I could work all year and have a fourth of that year’s work slide to the ground, and while I can’t pretend that I wouldn’t be pissed off, I’d start working toward the next year knowing full well that it could happen again.
---------
There’s a lot of reflection in this year’s show, and a lot of mirroring. This year I’m still hashing out some of the sub-themes that have slipped in over the last 7 years; next year should be a much different edit because it will the last edit before the completion of the project.
93. Las Vegas, NV (Kelley)
60. El Paso, TX (Woman in Front of Hair Color)
123. Philadelphia, PA (Linda Sunoco)
-----
146. Muckleshoot Reservation (Johnny Moses)
36. Philadelphia, PA (Mummer in Front of Gas Station Convenience Store)
------
27. Philadelphia, PA (Mummers Kissing)
211. Philadelphia, PA (I Love You Billy)
------
12. Chicago, IL (Tanya)
206. Chicago, IL (Woman at Cabrini Green)
------
13. Philadelphia, PA (Don’t Drink or Sit Deleted)
Not in the show
-------
69. Las Vegas, NV (Hotel Room Mirror)
47. Las Vegas, NV (Adam and Eve Room)
72. Philadelphia, PA (How Do I Look?)
14. Atlantic City, NJ (Blue and Red Motel)
There’s photos for sale at the table, and maps and photo lists, golf pencils, water and pretzels. Color copies are 5 dollars each, please ask for them by number. Every photo in the show has a number written on the ground in front of the image. If you want to buy a copy, tell the people at the table the number and they’ll get it for you. Working at the table will be Laura, Masha, Charday and Savannah.
Savannah: #1 Sister of all time!
Charday: play niece
Laura: intern from Uarts
Masha: intern from Moore
At 4 when the show is over people are welcome to take the photos from the pilasters. There’s adhesive backing on the photos, so if you think you want to take one bring saran wrap or paper to put on the back. And bring some for other people, too.
For folks who are just wandering in who or don’t know about the maps and photos for sale at the table, please tell them how the show works.
---------
After the I-95 show two years ago, right after I was in the Whitney biennial, I felt that some people didn’t understand that the show wasn’t a “give away,” but rather it’s just that when the show is done the photos are left to the elements and people can take them if they want. I had some consternation regarding how I saw the taking of the photos after the show was done. I did want people to take them if they wanted them… but I wanted someone to take them on the basis of their engagement with the show, not on the promise of a piece of the show having monetary value. However, after that first year when the perceived worth of my photos shifted, I found that when I stepped back I really didn’t care what happened to the photos when it was done, just like from the start. If someone takes a photo it implies engagement, regardless of reason. And of course money is a valid reason… what the hell was I thinking? When it’s over, it’s over, and anything can happen with the images.
There have been very few changes since the project began and most of them were a result of rehashing how the show went the year before and then making minor shifts… like an addition of an hour, it use to be 1pm to 3pm, now it’s 1pm to 4pm. But when I started to sell ink-jet prints, I knew right away that I wanted to make higher quality prints for 95 if I could afford it and decided to make the same archival prints that I sell in the gallery to be laminated for 95. So the photos in the show this year are all archival ink-jet prints, which sell for 750 bucks at my NY gallery. And all but 3 of the 231 images are printed identically to the archival ink-jets that I sell. (I had to settle for a lower res with 3 because I didn’t have the time to rescan) Except, of course, the I-95 photos are laminated with an adhesive backing. When I began this project the images didn’t have monetary value in the art market, now it’s 173,250.00 dollars worth of photos that people can take. But there's no true shift in the worth… it’s the same as it was in the beginning and will be the same at the end; color copies or ink-jets, it’s the complete installation that’s the work and I’m happy to have the pieces of it off in the world, the prints and the copies and the web images and the vinyl and the slide shows.
In some ways, the putting up the images and then letting go of them is how it is with the weather for the day of the show… I can prepare all year for this show but it’s possible that it could rain. And while the installation goes up unless there’s a nuclear holocaust, rain makes putting up the show more difficult and means that a few images would be unable to adhere to the pillars. Too bad, but that’s what this show is. I could work all year and have a fourth of that year’s work slide to the ground, and while I can’t pretend that I wouldn’t be pissed off, I’d start working toward the next year knowing full well that it could happen again.
---------
There’s a lot of reflection in this year’s show, and a lot of mirroring. This year I’m still hashing out some of the sub-themes that have slipped in over the last 7 years; next year should be a much different edit because it will the last edit before the completion of the project.
93. Las Vegas, NV (Kelley)
60. El Paso, TX (Woman in Front of Hair Color)
123. Philadelphia, PA (Linda Sunoco)
-----
146. Muckleshoot Reservation (Johnny Moses)
36. Philadelphia, PA (Mummer in Front of Gas Station Convenience Store)
------
27. Philadelphia, PA (Mummers Kissing)
211. Philadelphia, PA (I Love You Billy)
------
12. Chicago, IL (Tanya)
206. Chicago, IL (Woman at Cabrini Green)
------
13. Philadelphia, PA (Don’t Drink or Sit Deleted)
Not in the show
-------
69. Las Vegas, NV (Hotel Room Mirror)
47. Las Vegas, NV (Adam and Eve Room)
72. Philadelphia, PA (How Do I Look?)
14. Atlantic City, NJ (Blue and Red Motel)
