artchipel
Valerie Hegarty (USA)
Valerie Hegarty’s installations create dream-like transitional spaces and objects that expand and fracture the austerity of an exhibition space while dismantling the constructs of image- and object-making. Informed by the current turbulent state of our country while also excavating from America’s past, Hegarty’s work often turns the gallery into a dramatic place of change. Working with fragile materials such as foamcore, paper, paint and glue, she exploits a scrupulous mimicry of objects only to demolish them by devices often associated with their historical significance. On one level the viewer can become overwhelmed with an inquisitive desire to determine what is real and what is constructed and on another, can decide to revel in the make-believe. Hegarty’s ruins suggest a path of destruction and chaos that can be traced from early colonialism to the most recent effects of globalization. Her work portrays a pivotal moment in our narrative – one that is full of pathos yet buoyed by the hope that comes with change. (source: Fountainhead Residency) Our sincere thanks to arpeggia for this Curator’s Monday.
[more Valerie Hegarty | Curator’s Monday with arpeggia]
