Titled ‘Casting Call,’ Judith Henry’s installation of 300 small abstract sculptures look like mini-cobbled together robots or tools. Featuring eyes or resembling cameras, some meet our gaze; others appear to be small totems, like the figure at front here, resembling Shiva surrounded by a ring of fire. (On view at Bravin Lee in Chelsea through Feb 17th).
How would life continue after an apocalypse? British artist Mike Nelson’s latest show at Chelsea’s 303 Gallery imagines a scenario in which a group of survivors on the North Sea coast build sculpture from washed up trash to recreate what they haltingly remember. This serpent, tattered flags and various totems speak to an unstoppable urge to establish a bulkhead and mediate the unknown. (Through Feb 21st).
Mike Nelson, detail from the installation ‘Gang of Seven,’ found materials collected from the North West Pacific Coast (feathers, tires, rocks, driftwood, Styrofoam, metal rods and chains, pylons, clothing), dimensions variable, 2013.
