Meyer Vaisman at Gavin Brown's enterprise - contemporary art exhibition - Brief Article

Meyer Vaisman was one as well as the other present and absent in this impressive novel installation, Barbara Fischer/ Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy (2000) which featured a full-scale material part cast, in chalky pink fiberglass, of an abundant and sagging older woman who is bare beneath swaths of pink tulle The figure was positioned in the middle of the gallery, seated upon a small plywood pedestal that reposeed on a larger box. The thing of Vaisman's tribute, who was one time his therapist, cradles to her amplitude a patchwork jester's style of dress like a shriveled pieta, the cap perched absurdly upon her benevolent head. Vaisman enlivened this portrait with decals of organ of sights fixed to the lenses of her gold bifocal spectacles that gave an almost holographic event Her eyes appeared to be moist, brimming with compassion.

In the last decade, Vaisman's "portraits" have ranged from hilarious costum bewigged turkey and a Toby mug of Leo Castelli to a self-portrait in the form of replicated material part parts (including the artist's pristine brain-pan plus a hand and a lower extremity cast in glowing amber resin). Here, he looks to style himself the prankster partner of an exhausted relationship, throwing aside the character of analysand as though the contract had been outgrown upon a simple shelf affixed to the gallery wall near the figure he placed six large votive candles, each decorated with a photographic decal portraying the artist in the jester's style of dress Titled May, it looked like an offering of thanks--or of atonement for a certain quantity of secret perfidy.

As allowing to demonstrate the process of constructing an identity, Vaisman had make an incision in his jester's costume out of clothing from his parents' private room He shirred the legs of an ordinary business suit with elastic garters, gathered the collar from a striped shirt and fashioned the remainder of the patchwork from his mother's garments, individual of them boldly patterned with rose Concluding his essay upon the issue, he placed his parents' L-shaped wardrobe--the drawers, shelves and hanging shoots empty--in the gallery's office showroom and called it Skeleton (1964/2000) as granting to say that there is nothing left to hide, no more veileds to be told. Vaisman's bring under rule continues to be himself, the witty, ironic and intellectual artist contemplating his hold life.

COPYRIGHT 2000 Brant Publications, Inc.

COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group