Tag: cahokia

Elias Sime at James Cohan Gallery

Megaphones accent the surfaces of Ethiopian artist Elias Sime’s latest sculptures at James Cohan Gallery, prompting viewers to question what voices are amplified in public discourse.  In the context of politics and the pandemic, Sime explains that he’s thinking about “…how humans are easily manipulated by individuals and rush to conclusions that they often regret when the truth begins to surface.”  Having recently created domed sculpture for a show at the Saint Louis Art Museum inspired by Native American Cahokia Mounds and the St Louis Gateway Arch, this huge, bowl-like sculpture is a highlight of Sime’s current show. (On view in Tribeca through April 24th.  Masks, social distancing and appointments are required).

Elias Sime, Tightrope: Eyes and Ears of a Bat (1), reclaimed electrical wires on wood, 47 ¼ x 83 ½ inches, 2020.

Jeffrey Gibson at Socrates Sculpture Park

Jeffrey Gibson’s enormous structure at Socrates Sculpture Park initiates the park’s new ‘Monuments Now’ project, a series of sculptures focusing on the current hot-button topic of public monuments and their representation of US history.  Inspired by the pre-Columbian Mississippian earthen structures of Cahokia and wheat-pasted with eye-popping posters in bright colors that celebrate a queer sensibility, Gibson’s ziggurat dominates the park with joyous pulsing patterns.  Texts on each side read, ‘Powerful because we are different’ and ‘Respect indigenous land,’ strong messages to read against the backdrop of Mannahatta, as Manhattan was known prior to the arrival of Europeans. (On view in Queens through March 2021).

Jeffrey Gibson, ‘Because Once You Enter My House It Becomes Our House,’ Plywood, posters, steel, LEDs, and performances, 44 × 44 × 21 ft, 2020.