The Gowanus Studio Presents
Exercise Class
at Spring/Break Art Show
In conjunction with the Armory Show 2013
March 5 - 11, 2013
curated by Angela Conant
The impetus for this curatorial structure is a 1988 experiment in embodied cognition which proposed that language can be "grounded" in physical states of the body. The test by Fritz Strack, Leonard L. Martin and Sabine Stepper had subjects hold pencils or pens in their teeth while reading humorous statements. Subjects rated their responses to the statements as compared with readings with mouths pencilfree. Findings were that statements got rated more humorous on average with the pencil activating subjects' smile muscles. Participating artists have performed a similar test on themselves, but instead of testing language comprehension necessarily, they choose actions on which to perform such an experiment. The show will be installed holistically, using placement and the relationship between objects to demonstrate the forensics of how each piece was made. Objects will be organized to prioritize spacial relationships in a room and to acknowledge the nature of the school house space. Participating artists include those who have assisted, organized or participated in some crucial way at The Gowanus Studio Space, a cooperative arts organization in Brooklyn.
Grayson Cox, Jennifer Dayton, Beka Goedde, Dylan Gauthier, Alix Lambert, Michelle Levy, Merx & Gwynne, Rachel Ostrow, Krista Peters, Francesco Simeti, Kendra Sullivan, John Whitlock
