Spring Arts Review: Special Biennial Section Whitney 2004: An Old Navy Kinda Biennial To put it briefly- the most exciting thing about the Whitney Biennial this year was that I saw Lili Sobieski among the crowd of attendees. Considered to be the show which defines the state-of-the-art of art for America, no article about the Biennial can omit the phrase "the show everyone loves to hate." The problem, this year, is that the Biennial fails to fulfill its mandate- rather curators Chrissie Iles, Shamim M. Momin and Debra Singer have thrown in everything but the kitchen sink (actually...) in an attempt to please everyone, which is a shame. I'd rather the Biennial be incredibly wrong than banal. The thing about this banality tough, is that it's exciting- in a State Fair, Old Navy kind of way. It's bright, brash and has the feel of a midway designed to sell you easily digestible concepts. The seventies still remains the decade to draw inspiration from, as the psychedelia of assume vivid astro focus's pop art installation and Spencer Finch's Mylar and silkscreened macrame wallpaper more than attest to. Installation art makes up a larger part of this Biennial than previous ones, but it is video that reigns supreme. The best of the lot is Sue de Beer's Hans und Grete, a combination of both installation and video that is a satisfying trend. Too often, video is displayed against a blank wall- de Beer's displays her two-panel projection like a giant pop-up book and fills the space with oversized stuffed animals for the viewers to lay on. The video itself is a fascinating conflagration of youthful tomfoolery and savage violence. Two morose teenagers play on guitars in separate rooms- the whole thing plays like a bad school project, even the guitars are fake. De Beers then cuts to another youth savagely cutting open a bleeding dog- or is it another stuffed animal. Through the sopping blood, it's hard to know the difference. In every Biennial there emerges art which is great, regardless of trends. The best of the best include Roni Horn's, Doubt By Water- a series of photographs displayed in head height Plexiglas stands. Some are scattered in the stairwell, others in a jumble you have to navigate through. The images: of a tow-headed boy and of a raven are deglamourized and extremely accessible. The repetition of the images, even while subtly changing, combined with the presentation, are a subtle, but entirely engaging meditation on the nature of seriality. Kim Fisher's painting Beryl 81 is a wonderful addition to the minimalist genre. With the extra canvas spilling over the frame and onto the wall, Fisher's abstract geometries seem to burst with life. Other must-see artists include A-Z West's homespun narrative on creating sustainable architecture in the desert, Jack Pierson's evocative Self Portraits, actually photographs of other people taken to evoke himself at various ages and printed in soft pastels with inkjet on canvas, as well as David Altmejd's sculpture Delicate Men in Positions of Power, which seems to be unearthed bodies made of salt, glitter and twine. It's a shame the Biennial's curators were unable to provide some kind of synthesis for this show. On a case-by-case level, much of the art here is to be enjoyed, but take a step back and all you see is clutter. The Whitney Biennial is open now through May 30th. Tickets are available at the Museum and cost from $12-24 dollars. Fridays after 6pm is pay as you wish and generally a great pick-up joint. The museum is closed Monday and Tuesday. The Whitney is located at 846 Madison Avenue and 75th Street. You can reach the Whitney at 1-800-WHITNEY or http://www.whitney.org/

posted by Japhy at 3/22/2004 12:54:00 PM || #