IRREDUCIBLE
October 26, 2005 - February 26, 2006

This exhibition presents two dozen videos—by artists from North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia—that are structured around a particular situation, event, or performance. Most take a straightforward documentary approach to their subject, ranging from humorous to critical, and the majority are shot in public spaces.

A large number of the videos in this exhibition focus on everyday activities and events—walking city streets or playing music—and subtly address social and political issues (such as the feeling of being a foreigner in another culture or the U.S. Navy’s use of Vieques as a bombing range). An important selection of the videos exhibits an intimacy—isolated one-camera shots follow solitary subjects and acts. In Douglas Gordon’s sexually suggestive Blue, the artist uses his wringing hands to evoke erotic puppet theater. And, in Phat Free, David Hammon’s compelling minimalist performance video, an anonymous man engages in a less-than-trivial pursuit of kicking a large silver can through the streets of New York.

Artists: Dan Acostioaei & Ann Wodinski, Mauricio Alejo, Jennifer Allora & Guillermo Calzadilla, Jesper Alvaer, Yael Bartana, Mircea Cantor, Douglas Gordon, David Hammons, Kimsooja, Glenda Leon, Mark Lewis, Mads Lynnerup, Euan Macdonald, Aernout Mik, Will Rogan, Aïda Ruilova, Anri Sala, Song Dong, Su-Mei Tse, Gillian Wearing, Wood & Harrison, David Zink Yi, and Artur Zmijewski.

"While a number of videos in this show reflect on political and cultural situations in different parts of the world, what ultimately unites these diverse works is their ability to draw complex meanings from singular situations and actions. They make the case that even the simplest gestures and moments can generate an irreducible aesthetic experience," says CCA Wattis Institute Director Ralph Rugoff, who organized the exhibition.

The exhibition is organized by CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, San Francisco. The presentation at The Bronx Museum of the Arts is made possible with support from the U.S. Small Business Administration, under the auspices of Congressman José E. Serrano.