"Whatever Happened to the Pentagon (Restaurant)?" by Deb Sokolow, a pictographic narrative on accordion-folded paper, is a hilarious whodunit that makes me curious to see the rest of its 100-issue series. And Dominic McGill's "Whatever is Consciousness Wears Out," a matrix of quotations and associative musings gorgeously drawn on a sculpture of a skull, is an exhibit highlight despite the trappings of its glass case.

Despite some frustrating opacities, and the fact that many of the works feel either too small or too whimsical for the ICA, "Drawn to Disaster" offers many thoughtful, unsettling perspectives on subjects we barely know how to approach. Nobody said art was supposed to be comfortable.

Nicholas Schroeder can be reached atnschroeder@phx.com.

"DRAWN TO DISASTER" | mixed-media group exhibition | Through August 7 | ICA at MECA, 522 Congress St, Portland | 800.639.4808 | meca.edu/meca-life/ica

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ARTICLES BY NICHOLAS SCHROEDER
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