Impermanence of Containment by Shawn Porter was recently on display as part of the 337 Project. (Only a handful of works in the show were clearly labeled. I’m not sure if this was because it was too difficult to label all the work or because the artists didn’t want their names attached. Oh wait, I’m trying not to be “Mr. Art Snob.”)
Impermanence of Containment works because it speaks simultaneously to the ideas of destruction and potential. Created from concrete spheres and thin wooden slats, the work reminds one of rubble, the aftermath of an explosion or wrecking ball. Installed in a soon-to-be-demolished building, the sculpture questions our throw-away society, our willingness to just tear it down and build something new.
At the same time, the tension created by the wooden slats and the cascade of concrete spheres wonders what might happen if the walls were gone; what might spring into existence if the materials could escape from the current confines.
Mr. Porter used free space and clean walls to distance him from other work in the building, creating an oasis amid the overwhelming clutter; room to contemplate our obsession with new and better.
Impermanence of Containment works because it speaks simultaneously to the ideas of destruction and potential. Created from concrete spheres and thin wooden slats, the work reminds one of rubble, the aftermath of an explosion or wrecking ball. Installed in a soon-to-be-demolished building, the sculpture questions our throw-away society, our willingness to just tear it down and build something new.
At the same time, the tension created by the wooden slats and the cascade of concrete spheres wonders what might happen if the walls were gone; what might spring into existence if the materials could escape from the current confines.
Mr. Porter used free space and clean walls to distance him from other work in the building, creating an oasis amid the overwhelming clutter; room to contemplate our obsession with new and better.
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