Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

SculptureCenter Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

SculptureCenter’s major exhibition and operating support is generously provided by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; Jeanne Donovan Fisher; the Kraus Family Foundation; the Lambent Foundation Fund of Tides Foundation; the A. Woodner Fund; and contributions from our Board of Trustees. Additional funding is provided

by Luhring Augustine and contributions from many generous individuals.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room is presented with the support of Wendy Fisher and kurimanzutto.

All rights reserved, including rights of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. ©SculptureCenter and the authors Published by SculptureCenter 44-19 Purves Street Long Island City, NY 11101 t: 718.361.1750 f: 718.786.9336 info@sculpture-center.org www.sculpture-center.org ISBN: 978-0-9893389-8-1 Design: Claudia Brandenburg, Language Arts Copy Editor: Lucy Flint Printer: RMI Printing, New York All photographs by Kyle Knodell.

Cover: Gabriel Sierra, Untitled (ALLÍ/THERE), 2014.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

September 20, 2015–January 4, 2016

SculptureCenter Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

SculptureCenter

Rossella Biscotti: Gabriel Sierra: 1,2,3 The Undercover Ruba Katrib Man

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Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

Attempting to obey the signals that Gabriel Sierra sends throughout his exhibition might prove a challenging task. Reorganizing the lower level galleries of SculptureCenter, Sierra has created a series of site-specific works that disrupt the usual order of things. The labyrinthine quality of the space, filled with crannies and corridors, is emphasized through new cues and architectural elements. Slight adjustments paired with major reconfigurations call into question the meaning of the space as a historical brick-and-mortar building functioning as an active exhibition site. Encouraging modified behavior and altered movement, Sierra has unhinged the logic of the space, further broken down by the exhibition’s title, Numbers in a Room, which articulates the idea that space is composed of data.

Taking into account the history of SculptureCenter’s building as a former trolley repair facility as well as that of New York City and its subway system and signage, Sierra has incorporated the theme of tracks and signals in his construction. An exit sign slowly moves down one corridor, almost unnoticeably, at times catching up with, surpassing, or falling behind viewers as they traverse the space. In another tunnel-like corridor, geometric shapes fit snugly into arches, shifting the scale and direction of pedestrian movement while creating a new set of chambers and hallways. In other spaces, large-scale burlap-covered geometric forms create a passable barrier and a triangle fills out the corner of a landing. Tailored to the space, these forms indicate a possible revision of the given architecture, filling, opening, closing, and emptying the gallery of its traditional elements.

The introduction of new forms and language extends to a series of metal tabs similar to the ones used to communicate to the conductor in an underground train system. This information, meaningful to a specialized set of people and obscure to others, appears in this exhibition as three separate signal systems: a rotating combination of CMYK (color model) triangles, circles, and squares; a sign running through the letters of the alphabet; and the numbers 1–9. These codes communicate messages to visitors that they must interpret on their own. Projected as videos, slowly cycling through the colors and their correlating shapes, the numbers, and the letters. The change between units of information is only perceptible by slowing down. Or you might catch it as it shifts, an “R” suddenly becoming a “T.” Maybe you wrap back around the space and you notice that the “9” is now a “4.” Without offering clear instruction, the artist indirectly guides the pacing and rhythm of the exhibition.

The forms, colors, and textures that Sierra employ provide exercises in association and possibility. One asks, what seems correct or incorrect about a space, should a wall have a 30-degree angle, and, thinking of Bauhaus color and shape studies, is magenta a better fit for a circle or a square? One of the burlap forms operates as a partition in an exhibition space, the shapes now creating a new entrance, splitting what was before a boxy room. On one side, the wall is flat, and on the other it is at an angle to form a triangle. The doorway is a separate movable shape that fits seamlessly into the opening; its position changes throughout the run of the exhibition. On Mondays, it is closed.

Another room, a storage space normally shut off to the public, is now open. Inside, you might discover the notice that “occupancy by more than 1 person is dangerous and unlawful.” Elements like these call into question the preexisting signage, weaving a new texture of sense and nonsense. Through these elements, the exhibition creates its own narrative. Days of the week, minutes of the day, colors, shapes, and empty and filled spaces construct a new story. Motion activates the physical narrative and moves it into four dimensions. The questions that arise––where can you move, how you can move, what is moving and how does it move?––prompt an awareness of how much or little freedom we have in negotiating public spaces. The moving exit sign encapsulates the energy of Sierra’s exhibition. A ubiquitous element of American public space, the sign here chases and is chased by the viewer. Pointing to an escape route that is always moving, never fixed, it becomes impossible to heed. In this exhibition, the sign and its purpose continually escape each other, releasing the attachment of thing and meaning.

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (o(op(ope(open)pen)en)n), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

(Door Open at 47째), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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Untitled (o(op(ope(open)pen)en)n), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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Untitled (o(op(ope(open)pen)en)n), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (pretext), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (45 minutes), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (o(op(ope(open)pen)en)n), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (contratiempo), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

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SculptureCenter

Untitled (keyboard), installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room

Untitled (badly explained rainbow #2), 2008 – 2015, installation view, Gabriel Sierra: Numbers in a Room, SculptureCenter, 2015.

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SculptureCenter

Checklist of Works in the Exhibition

(Door Open at 47°), 2015 Door open at 47 degrees, room, and sign Dimensions variable Untitled (45 minutes), 2015 Projection over metal 6 x 20 inches (15.2 x 50.8 cm) Untitled (badly explained rainbow #2), 2008 – 2015 Projection over metal 6 x 20 inches (15.2 x 50.8 cm) Untitled (contratiempo), 2015 Painted wood construction and projection Dimensions variable Untitled (keyboard), 2015 Projection over metal 6 x 20 inches (15.2 x 50.8 cm) Untitled (o(op(ope(open)pen)en)n), 2015 MDF and burlap Dimensions variable Untitled (pretext), 2015 Modified exit sign, metal track, and electronic components Dimensions variable ­­

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SculptureCenter Board of Trustees

SculptureCenter Staff

Sascha S. Bauer, Chair Fred Wilson, President Danielle Anderman Candace Barasch Andreas Beroutsos Sanford Biggers Carol Bove Allen H. Brill Priscilla Vail Caldwell Eleanor Cayre Robert K. Elliott Libby Ellis Arline Feinberg John H. Friedman Glauco Lolli-Ghetti Nate McBride Adam McEwen Elena M. Paul Eleanor Heyman Propp Allison Rubler Lisa Schiff Diane Solomon Elaine G. Weitzen

Mary Ceruti, Executive Director and Chief Curator Ben Whine, Associate Director Kim Schnaubert, Development Director Ruba Katrib, Curator Holly Stanton, Exhibition and Program Manager Claire Valdez, Operations Manager Cheryl Chan, Assistant to the Director/Development Assistant Steven Mayer, Visitor Services and Membership Manager Valentina Medda, Visitor Engagement Representative Morgan Edelbrock, Head Installer Kiersten Lukason, Installer

SculptureCenter 44-19 Purves Street Long Island City, NewYork 718.361.1750 www.sculpture-center.org