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Elevating Contemporary Artists.
Elevating Contemporary Artists.
May 2016 -
Lines of Site is a site-responsive art installation combining the geometric constructions of Kara Schmidt with Erin Treacy’s anthropomorphic figures in a composition mirroring the sight lines of neighborhood residents and schoolchildren. The trajectory of these specific viewpoints is reflected in these playful geometric patterns and biomorphic images woven into the trellis fence “windows” of Harlem Art Park. Schmidt’s geometric panels manage to appear as a three-dimensional object, although only inhabiting two dimensions of space—inviting the viewer to approach and observe the intricate structure more closely. The layout of Schmidt’s meandering linear construction on six panels is captured in the expanded arrangement of Treacy’s colorful figures across the trellis fence. Treacy’s detailed figures—created from pieces of dismantled “successful” paintings, recycled “failed” paintings and trimmings of still existing paintings—manage to inhabit three-dimensional space in “living” way, appearing inviting and playful. Treacy’s figures seem flat but upon closer inspection reveal a three-dimensional structure, appositely responsive to Schmidt’s trompe l’oeil configuration. Evincing themes as diverse as critic John Berger "Ways of Seeing" and Hitchcock's "Rear Window", Lines of Site reveals the act of looking as a conscious act requiring both the observer and observed and is an engaging reminder of Harlem Art Park's role as a site for contemplation and a place to see and be seen.