Apex Art Curatorial Program
SportCult
Curated by:
Euridice Arratia
Artists:
Carlos Amorales - Gustavo Artigas - Elisabetta Benassi - Ana Busto and Sandra Seymour - Mónica de la Torre and Bruce Pearson - Godfried Donkor - Satch Hoyt - Michaela Schweiger - Grazia Toderi
© Satch Hoyt, The Don KingDom, 2001
Courtesy the artist and Apex Art, New York
It’s no wonder that sports function with such power in society. Often it is a nation’s identity itself that is sports’ principal narrative. Sports recount compelling stories of individual exploits and collective yearnings, but they also act as a meeting ground where far-ranging issues commingle, sometimes in contradiction. Side by side in the complex field of sports, one finds notions of leisure and entertainment and of bodily regimens and discipline, notions of athletes as symbols of local pride and idealism and as commodities and corporate entities. Coming from diverse backgrounds and using a variety of media, the artists included in SportCult point to the pervasiveness of the sports culture and its richness for metaphorical play.
The work of video artists Grazia Toderi and Elisabetta Benassi (Italy) dwells in the charged intersection between the sport arena and private and collective dreams.
Carlos Amorales explores in his performances the world of lucha libre (wrestling), a wildly popular entertainment in his native Mexico.
© Carlos Amorales, Carlos Amorales vs. Carlos Amorales, 2000
Courtesy the artist and Apex Art, New York
Gustavo Artigas (Mexico) stages and documents “sport events,” hiring semi-professional players to play soccer, basketball, or, in the case of his installation for SportCult, mudwrestling.
In her interactive work Carrera, the German artist Michaela Schweiger revels in the childhood fascination with mimetic play.
Godfried Donkor (Ghana-UK) and Satch Hoyt (Jamaica) both investigate how race and corporate power mix it up in the world of boxing. Godfried Donkor has created wallpaper specifically for the exhibition,depicting eighteenth-century boxers superimposed on the pages of the London Financial Times.
© Gustavo Artigas, From the VS series: #4, 2001
Courtesy the artist and Apex Art, New York
Satch Hoyt, in his figural work, takes as a point of departure the famous impresario Don King in creating his sculpture made entirely of boxing gloves.
The soundscape Night Fights, created by Ana Busto (Spain) and Sandra Seymour (USA) is an aural excerpt of the intense life of the boxer.
And keeping with the interdisciplinary spirit of this exhibition, the Mexican poet Mónica de la Torre, has teamed up with the American artist Bruce Pearson to create a piece conjoining text and image that looks at the culture of recreation sports.
A color brochure containing an essay by Euridice Arratia will be available free of charge.
Apex Art, New York
September 7 - October 6, 2001
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