D’Amelio Terras, New York
July 13 – August 11, 2006
In her first solo exhibition, Heather Rowe will present a single sculpture entitled Green Desert. Rowe’s structures are architectural fragments that reference office spaces, corridors, or waiting rooms and are built out of familiar construction materials but take a departure from functionality. The introduction of figurative elements such as guillotines and glass or mirrored shards pushes the viewer to experience a sense of discomfort. The spatial dysfunction allows for various perspectives in which an open-ended narrative begins to unfold.
Green Desert, at once imposing and fragile, assumes a partial form of an inverted room in which the four corners have been turned in on themselves radiating outwards from the center of the gallery. Inspired by a scenario in which misinterpretations and assumptions occur between two people in close and intimate proximity, Rowe’s awkward re-framing of the room reminds us of how you can be physically close to someone yet have complete psychological disconnect.
“. . . we can identify the different components of Rowe’s installations as individual frames. Each offers a unique perspective, yet all come together to tell an overarching story. Also, the temporal factor has to be considered. A film unfolds over time; only through the film’s duration can one put all the loose fragments and story-lines together. To confront Rowe’s work requires a similar approach. Although, unlike in a filmic situation, where the viewer rests in one position, here the viewer has to walk around the work. And it takes time to assemble the ‘frames.’”
