Exchange # 4.3, May 2013

Exchange # 4.3

Adam → Jordan

Blurry Moose Attack!!! This is what moose look like in Oakland, I think.

I had a bit of a lag getting this last iteration back to Jordan, but for good reason. I just finished the process of moving myself into a new studio and waited until I had moved in to jump back into the exchange. I’m really excited about the studio, as I think it will actually allow me to spend more time on projects like this and focus more on this kind of small scale work.

A nice quiet space all to myself. No noisy machines, no air thick with dust, no students.

Anyway, on to the Flat Rate Exchange.

After sending two packages to Jordan kind of back to back, this is what I received in April.

The thing I am finding most interesting about this project is what we decide to focus on. It says a lot about our personal and shared interests in material. In this case, Jordan really focused on the polyester batting that I packed a recent exchange in and used it as stuffing for the saw. He then packaged up a few altered objects and divided the remaining batting into individual bags. In a way, this project is a process of either breaking down the work of the other artist, or elaborating on it.

As a response to this, I approached his breaking up of the piece into a collection of individual fragments, by grafting those objects together through a kind of surgery.

first I opened up the saw

Then I inserted the golden comb

Then I closed it back up.

Next, I dismantled the handle to this jailhouse hacksaw.

and inserted it under the plastic membrane

It came out looking something like this…(exactly like this)

obviously it has to hang on the pegboard amongst my growing collection of wooden tennis and badminton rackets.

Next, I took the remaining batting and a broken drillpress handle that I have been hoarding and made my own fluffy tool to send back to Jordan.

Finally, one of my favorite parts of Jordan’s iteration of this exchange was this little guy…

a shipping label with Jordan’s signature moose

I think the language of the USPS plays a big part in this project and certainly inserts itself into every aspect of it. The whole thing kind of starts from this idea of connection across great space by way of this institution. The language is embedded in the entire project.

This Moose is always blurry!!!

I went back into Jordan’s sticker and picked out the good parts, putting them back into the objects as product labeling or some obscure warnings. out of context, each of the little words or symbols looses its meaning so maybe we can invent a new one.

 

Lastly, of course, I broke the saw in half:

Then I packed the two new (…ly altered) objects, along with the leftovers of the label into the Flat Rate box with zip ties along with with the moose from the label on the address panel…

… and sent it on its way…

We are having fun

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