The title of this work, Gate, refers to a movable barrier, a closing or an opening in a fence, wall, or other enclosure, an opening permitting passage through. William Burroughs refers to language as a mechanism of control, an enclosure, and he used the cut-up technique to open it, to break through it. It allowed him to enter into the text, and access language beyond to an alternate world. Gate physically and sonically references a William Burroughs cut-up text collage. He further cut up this particular text with a line drawing, fragmenting the text even further. Gate is based on this drawing, using it as a plan for the sculpture, which is connected to the wall of the gallery at a right angle. The transcribed text was processed using a digital voice program. The computerized reading pronounces the words, but also sometimes pronounces single letters or just punctuation, depending on the way this cut-up was originally created.
Listen to the sound component on Soundcloud.
MORE LIGHT
September 9 – October 29, 2017
Curated by Gladys-Katherina Hernando
JOAN is a Los Angeles-based nonprofit space for exhibitions, performances, and screenings. http://joanlosangeles.org/about/
Loren Abbate
C.P. Badger
Michael Carter
Manny Castro
Michael Genovese
Marcos Lutyens
Adam D. Miller
Christina Ondrus
Ali Prosch
David Schafer
Katie Shapiro
Astri Swendsrud
Mungo Thompson
Landon Wiggs
David Schafer 