Retro-Tech

  • Aleksandra Mir

    Untitled from ”On the Moon,” 2009

    Collage on board

    12 1/8 x 9 ¼ inches

    Courtesy of the artist and Gavlak, Palm Beach

  • Scott Kildall & Victoria Scott

    Schrödinger's Cat from “No Matter,” 2008

    Paper sculpture made from inkjet prints using archival paper

    24 x 10 x 10 inches

    Courtesy of the artists
  • Camille Scherrer

    Le Monde des Montagnes (The World of Mountains), 2008

    Custom software, camera/lamp, book, and table

    Courtesy of the artist and ECAL 2008 diploma - software: Julien Pilet, CV-lab - EPFL+ECAL lab

    With the support of swissnex San Francisco and the Swiss Arts Council, Pro Helvetia

  • Tim Hawkinson

    Aerial Mobile, 1998

    Television antennae, fabric, and string

    Approximately 10 feet x 12 feet x 12 feet

    Collection of Peter Norton
  • Katya Bonnenfant
     2:57AM Onibaba Anguish from “Vintage Packaging for Animation,” 2009
    Digital animation on iPod Touch, mounted in vintage clock
    3 1/2 x 7 3/4 x 5 1/2 inches 
    Signed and dated inside packaging in ink
    Edition variée 1/5
    Collection of Martin Maguss and Mari Iki

The artists represented in this exhibition grapple with the potential of technology as they “build their own world.” They re-purpose and manipulate technologies of the past and present in ways that range from playful to ironic to analytical. As these artists explore the ‘craft’ of technology, they often investigate the very notion of obsolescence. Here, with the benefit of our 21st-century hindsight, the historical course of technology becomes a vehicle for understanding both our present context and our visions for an augmented future.

Artists include

Jennifer Allora & Guillermo Calzadilla (Puerto Rico), Katya Bonnenfant (Lyon, France), Tim Hawkinson (Los Angeles), Scott Kildall & Victoria Scott (San Francisco), Aleksandra Mir (Palermo, Italy), REBAR (Blaine Merker, John Bela, and Matthew Passmore; San Francisco), Camille Scherrer (La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland), Xu Zhen (Shanghai), and Ricardo Miranda Zúñiga (New York).

Retro-Tech, organized for the 2010 01SJ Biennial, is presented with the support of ZER01, 1st ACT, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

This program is part of the Shanghai Celebration. For more information on this year-long San Francisco Bay Area-wide festival and its associated exhibitions, films, performances, lectures, and other events, please visit www.shanghaicelebration.com. The cornerstone of the Celebration is the Asian Art Museum's presentation of Shanghai, a major exhibition examining the visual culture of one of China's most cosmopolitan cities, scheduled for February 12— September 5, 2010.

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