8 June 2000
Leslie Raymond and Jason Jay Stevens have discovered the secret
life of crows.
The Ann Arbor-based artists have collaborated on a study of the birds to determine
the dynamics of socially gametic relationships. They will present their findings
- a historical record of crow studies, the oral record of crows, direct observatin
of crow communities, and an account of the relationship between researchers
and our critical interpretation of philosophical and scientific methods - in
A Gametic Ontology of Crows.
In fact, it is a collection of nine freestanding components, on display at
Artcite, Windsor's artist-run centre for contemporary arts, from June 17. Quirky
as it may seem, the mixed-media installation promises a unique interperetaion
of these historically misunderstood creatures.
"We've taken nine different aspects of the crow's personality or lore and then
designated each of the pieces to be one of those," says Raymond, adding that
the show will explore the crow's various roles, including that of witness, harbinger,
sentinel, caw, articifer and collector.
The pieces are made of wood and metal, and while Stevens hesitates to call
them furniture, they do share certain common structural elements. They also
contain media elements like video and sound, as well as built-in, visitor-activated
components; all of the freestanding objects are closed boxes equipped with devices
for listening, viewing, or interacting. The creation of a mixed-media habitat
facilitates a greater appreciation and understanding of the crow than a strictly
visual presentation could.
The project constantly embraces a scientific method, but without definitive
conclusions. "I think that the [scientific and artistic] processes both include
a research stage, a developmental stage, a fabrication or lab experiment stage,
and then a presentation or findings stage. For me, it's very natural that it
overlaps," Raymond explains.
"It has this kind of scientific instrument aspect to it, like looking through
a microscope.... In one way, it's a research tool," Stevens adds.
The use of three peepholes - including one constructed using Artcite's storefront
window and visible from the street - enhances this, while creating a sense of
intrigue.
"Peepholes tend to hold a sort of mystery for people, because their contents
behold many secrets and images that are not meant for the innocent eye. The
peephole is one of the archetypes in the pantheon of fetishes. There's something
arousing about a peephole that makes you want to look in and you become a voyuer.
[We're] playing on this drive in people," says Stevens.
Through the creation of Potter-Belmar Labs, a term which essentially defines
their collaboration, Raymond and Stevens seek aesthetic expressions through
the practice of new disciplines.
"I'm striving to define a term - 'post-science' - as being a field or discipline
that combines our modern science with pre-science or belief systems outside
the modern scientific structure, including shamanism, totemism, alchemy and
the sciences or belief systems that have taken a back seat because of [modern
Western] science."
A gametic Ontology of Crowsis the pair's second installation, and they
intend to continue producing projects and findings on a regular basis. "We want
the audience to feel as though they are being invited to research also," concludes
Raymond. "We're trying to appeal to their own sense of curiosity."
An opening reception forA Gametic Ontology of Crows will be held
June 17 at 7:30pm. The show will run through July 16 at Artcite.
- Rebecca Kendall