Soft Powers - 41 Cooper Sq
Welcome to Soft Powers
In the world of Soft Powers cotton cord overtakes steel beams and plants become networked users in a queering of technological space. Tower Prototype III floats above the gallery floor, light as air, as masked spectators linger below.
This solo thesis show's 2-story video installation features an aerial film of a flight from Miami to New York, wherein the video itself documents the 'broadcast' of the giant tower and affiliated biological materials as they circulate from Miami to New York and back again.
The artist-grown monstera plants were sold and gifted to gallery patrons so they might take a piece of the artist's tropical residence with them as extension of the Soft Powers network.
Opening Reception - October 26, 2021
Soft Powers opened on October 26, 2021 at the 41 Cooper Gallery in the East Village of New York, NY. The turnout was excellent considering the current state of things, with lots of students, Cooper Union alumni, and New Yorkers in attendance.
The installation prominently featured a 22-foot electrified macramé 5G cell phone tower entitled Tower Prototype III as well as live monstera plants and never-before-seen portraits of the international octogenarian supermodel Ms Pat.
Tower Prototype III
The tower was suspended in the three story atrium of the 41 Cooper Gallery, seen from three floors of 41's interior as well as through the floor-to-ceiling windows by East Village passerby.
The tower is made of electrified macramé, the main structure is essentially three giant sinnets made from 22 feet of continuous knots with a string light core. The tower took roughly two months of knot tying to reach the final execution.
Installation
The sheer scale of the tower had many visitors in awe, so it was quite hard to believe that the whole thing had been brought there in my checked airline luggage. A unique challenge of this show was having to plan and create the sculpture pieces from over 1,200 miles away, with minimal specifications on the site itself.
As part of the design I planned Tower Prototype III to be modular, with each electrified strut able to be assembled and transported separately. The tower was finally fastened together into the final structure on the gallery floor and then hoisted by myself and a full crew of an art handlers with a jenny lift.
