The phrase “how much longer” refers to a state in between. It implies an unmeasured distance before reaching the end, a sentiment akin to endurance. HOW MUCH LONGER moves from a demarcation of the time “in between” to consider the body as a site of endurance. The works presented here are viewed as pieces about duration vis-à-vis corporeal time. In considering subjects such as love and loss, week-long viral infections, sex acts and the interconnectedness of art and labour, these works suggest endurance is enmeshed in the materiality of time.
These artists incorporate an awareness of endurance, time, labour and even boredom as a factor in the creation of art. Whether through drawing, film, sculpture or installation work, the pieces in HOW MUCH LONGER refer to the anxiety embroiled in the creation process as manifest through corporeal time. Time spent thinking, living, creating and so on. These five artists have taken seemingly ordinary experiences of passing time, living life, and made them extraordinary. Though produced with conceptually rigorous and minimalist strategies, these works were chosen because they represent intimate moments in these artists’ lives which may include autobiographical or narrative qualities, often presented in the form of giving themselves over to their audience in a metaphorical or literal sense.
This project is curated by J.J. Kegan McFadden, a candidate to the Masters Degree in Critical and Curatorial Studies at The University of British Columbia.
We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Alvin Balkind Fund for Student Curatorial Initiatives; The Department of Art History, Visual Art and Theory, the Faculty of Arts, and the Museum of Anthropology at The University of British Columbia; Andrea Rosen Gallery and The Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation (New York City); The Andy Warhol Museum (Pittsburgh); Jack Shainman Gallery (New York City); Tracey Lawrence Gallery (Vancouver); and Peres Projects (Los Angeles).