Continuing through April 1, 2017
Tony Oursler’s “Unidentified" takes UFO culture as its point of departure. The show consists of three interconnected works: "My Saturnian Lover(s)," “Subz" and “Screens." Video and sculptural elements are fragmented and fused. Best known for his use of small machines that project illuminated, disembodied figures onto sculpted forms, “Unidentified" can be viewed as the next step in that trajectory, as the reassembled body continues to be a dominant theme. Oursler's five Screens are based on drawings made by hypnotized alien abductees. They are enigmatic human/alien cut outs, brightly colored shapes that reflect the abductee's memory of their experience. Each piece is constructed from wood, painted with acrylic and covered with resin. Each has embedded media players and LED screens that loop video footage of human eyes, ears and mouths in expected as well as unexpected places. The works are both humorous and disconcerting, yet when seen in context make perfect sense. As always, Oursler simultaneously delights and confounds.
