Greta Pratt, Nine Lincolns
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No longer the exclusive domain of modern-day enthusiasts for mediæval faires and Civil War battlefields, the idea of historical re-enactment — re-creating aspects of a historical event or period, down to authentic goblets and chain mail or fifes and drums — has captured the art world’s imagination lately, and small wonder. With our administration’s grasp of history hazy at best, our iPod’s sense of history cued to shuffle, and our picture of days-gone-by informed by TV programs like PBS’s Frontier House, the time seems right for a fresh look back. In this spirit, opening at MASS MoCA on May 27 (an appropriate kickoff for Memorial Day weekend), “AHISTORIC OCCASION: ARTISTS MAKING HISTORY” presents work by Paul Chan, Jeremy Deller, Peggy Diggs, Felix Gmelin, Kerry James Marshall, Trevor Paglen, Greta Pratt, Dario Robleto, Nebojsa Seric-Shoba, Yinka Shonibare, and Allison Smith, all keen on examining how the past produces the present, or vice versa.“Ahistorical Occasion” includes The Battle of Orgreave, Jeremy Deller’s 2001 film re-creation of a 1984 coalminers’ strike in Sheffield, England; the project required scads of vintage 1984 costumes, 800 cast extras, and 1000 fake bricks for miners to throw. There’s also Greta Pratt’s photographs of members of the Association of Lincoln Presenters, impersonators who have immersed themselves in Lincoln’s life and physiognomy, and Allison Smith’s disarming project involving “trench art” — art made by soldiers from the materials of war. (This show has synergy with two exhibitions on view at the MIT Museum that I mentioned in my April 21 column: John Malpede’s “RFK in EKY” and Harrell Fletcher’s “The American War.” More at cavs.mit.edu.)
Right here, and now, the Photographic Resource Center is a real resource for contemporary photographers and photography lovers, with lively exhibitions and educational programming for an audience that ranges from students to professionals. The annual “PRC MEMBERS’ EXHIBITION,” which opens May 26, jurored this year by Jeanine Fijol, photography editor of Photo District News magazine, includes work by artists Hannah Smith Allen (Brooklyn), Ri Anderson (Cambridge and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico), and Katherine Cummings (Brighton).
Artists Adria Arch and Maryellen Sakura have organized “ASIAN LEGACY: ASIAN AND ASIAN AMERICAN ARTISTS RESPOND,” which is on view at the Arlington Center for the Arts, as part of the Center’s month-long Asian Festival. But don’t expect quaint porcelains or lacquer work! With 11 artists, including Leika Akiyama, Sachiko Akiyama, Hee Jung Kim, Sand T, and Sam Tan, this is bound to be a lively, multimedia affair. Check out the artists’ talk, which is moderated by independent video producer Helen Liu, in the gallery on May 20.
“AHISTORIC OCCASION” | May 27-February 2007 | MASS MoCA, 1040 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams | 413.662.2111 | “PRC MEMBERS’ EXHIBITION” | May 26-July 2 | Photographic Resource Center, 832 Comm Ave, Boston | 617.975.0600 | “ASIAN LEGACY” | through June 2; artist talk May 20, 3 pm | Arlington Center for the Arts, 41 Foster St, Arlington | 781.648.6220
On the Web
Mass MoCA: www.massmoca.org
Photographic Resource Center: www.prcboston.org
Arlington Center for the Arts:www.acarts.org
