Form or Function
April 24- June 6, 2021
This project is made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by Arts Mid-Hudson.
ARTISTS : Chuck von Schmidt, Karen Jaimes, Staveley Kuzmanov, Traci Johnson, Barbara Marks, Ellie Murphy, Courtney Puckett, Jim Osman, Rachel Urkowitz and Gabriele Hamill, Inna Babaeva, Clemens Kois, Sophi Kravitz, Christina Kruse, Jeanne Atkin, Kathleen Vance, Erika DeVries, and Rodger Stevens.
The exhibition “Form or Function” presents works that crosses over media and discipline, exploring the relationship of objects in between contemporary art, design and craft. “Form” and “Function” are often clearly defined, but here is an attempt to blur notions and create dialogue.
One basic principle of “good” design is “form follows function,” which states that the form art takes should be based upon its intent and purpose. If form follows function, the shape of an object should primarily relate to its intended function or purpose. But what if “form is the function”? The debate between art and design is old and continues to grow. Looking at everyday images, objects, tools and materials, we have very diverse emotional bonds with them. An artist creates a dialogue with their materials, providing intentions. Is it an object’s form, their history, or the story we create that attracts us?
Jim Osman’s wood construction sculptures are based on deceptively simple relationships—piling, bridging, angling. This contemplation of balance implies furniture, architecture, toys, and high modernism. Courtney Puckett’s human-scale, found object and repurposed textile assemblages integrate sculpture and craft practices. Karen Jaimes sculpts clay to address sociopolitical issues and question the systems in place. The trans-historical and transcultural nature of ceramics makes it the perfect material for metaphor. Barbara Marks’ upcycled paper works of disassembled packaging are intimate and personal; perhaps they’re narrative. Christina Kruse's minimalist drawings and sculpture create an association beyond form and engage a sense of balance. The hand knit steel bag of artist/jeweler, Jeanne Atkin assumes a surprisingly soft shape, accentuated by the nestled wooden and glass eggs inside. The photographer Clemens Kois constructs a heightened level of beauty and value in objects with his teetering stacked towers of delicately balanced vertical composition of maybe overlooked objects.
Interaction can animate the function of an object. Chuck von Schmidt’s playful “SIT” piece invites viewers to become a part of the sculpture so it takes on a new life. Ellie Murphy’s site-specific intervention with hundreds of hanging strings plays off the existing architecture of the gallery space to create an introspective physical dimension. Stanley Kuzmanov's sculptures combine her repetitive patterned textile designs within three-dimensional geometric structures that float in space. Rachel Urkowitz and Gabrielle Hamill’s tiny couches bring the potential for play into conversation with craft and color. With the invasion of amorphous, slug-like blobs into mass-produced homegoods, Inna Babeva transforms these objects to give a sense of being overwhelmed by material. Creating a euphoric “safe space” with positive soothing energies is Traci Johnson’s intention with her soft sculptures and carpeted mirrors. All the forms and functions alter intentions creating new meanings.
