Urban Interpretations
This round of windows were created by local artists John April, Jim Walker, Taylor Anne Smith, Chris Cook and Jessica Kestler. The new works are located at 100 block of N. Pennsylvania Street.
One of the connecting threads among this round of Picture Windows is the idea of reflection. There is the reflection of oneself, as well as the reflection of the world around us. In Jim Walker’s piece there is an element of self reflection by way of dreams and anxiety as we see a man holding an elephant plummeting from the sky into the sea. John April approaches this idea of reflection by examining his own writing practice while opening himself up to the public to read his unedited thoughts. In the work by Taylor Anne Smith, we are confronted with not only her reflection of herself but the city and world in which she lives. Through the use of x-rays she raises questions about our bodies and mortality while her use of maps, newspaper clippings, and other images help connect us to a particular time and place. The work of Chris Cook and Jessica Kestler (a collaborative team) take a more symbolic route and through the use of hundreds of mirrors, ask us to reflect upon the lives of the fallen American soldiers in the war in Iraq. Here, each soldier that has died to date is represented by a single mirror where we not only reflect upon their lives but see ourselves in theirs.
“Picture Windows: Urban Interpretations” was developed by Public Art Indianapolis, a program managed by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and funded by the Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission. Its intent is to bring locally created artwork to high traffic or transitional areas by commissioning artists to produce site-specific work for each window.
Project Descriptions (for further details on each artist, click on their name below):
Taylor Anne Smith
Which is more authentic, the mechanized construction of a city or the humanizing element of the arts?, 2007 Mixed Media
Artist Taylor Anne Smith playfully questions the concepts of artistic authenticity, development of the arts within a concrete and steel urban landscape, and the mythology of the artist. Smith references a city’s physical construction through a collaged backdrop of hand-colored architectural drawings, X-Rays of the artist’s body, original paintings, newspapers, Yellow Pages, oil stick drawings, as well as printed matter with hand-painted elements to create a ready-made abstraction.
Jim Walker
Can’t Let Go, 2007
Collage
“The main idea of the Surrealist collage is to create collisions of images that surprise, that defy real-world logic but still make some kind of new sense. Collages – mundane pieces of life cut and pasted together – succeed most when the viewer is pushed to ask questions and become an active a participant in the experience.”
"What is going on here?"
“With my work, I want to make new combinations, new leaps, new sparks, new ignitions. I want to create dreams and nightmares that the viewer can see and feel while awake. I want to be a builder of new worlds.” –Jim Walker
Chris Cook and Jessica Kestler
In the Fog of War, 2007
Wood, acrylic and mirrors
Cook’s work uses reflective surfaces and sleek modern materials to create unique 3-dimensional works that reflect a basic human attraction to order. In his work, Cook uses mirrors as a symbol in which the viewer is to reflect upon the fallen soldiers of the war in Iraq. Every mirror represents a single soldier that has been killed in the war to date. Each mirror is distinct in size and reflection just like the soldiers they represent.
John April
word pictures, 2007
Digital projection, paper, glass, mirrors
“Word pictures is a text-based digital installation and an experiment in cultivating awareness and attention. The writing is the result of my daily practice. This is an invitation to the viewer. Are you reading or are you watching?” –John April
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