Common Fold: A Site-Specific Installation by Niki Shapiro
September 3rd – October 12, 2009
Opening Reception: September 3rd 2009, 7-10 pm
Divisadero Community Gallery, SF, CA
Drawing upon folk traditions such as gift exchange customs, origami and basket weaving histories, throughout September 3rd - October 12, 2009 the Divisadero Community Gallery will be transformed into a public archive.
Over the past two years, I have been collecting magazines and catalogs in return for small hand made paper tokens of appreciation. Using potential green house gas emitters as artifacts for investigation, I rip, sort and z-fold glossy, color saturated quarter pages. Armed only with my staple gun, these continuously growing webs link basic behavior pattern with form. Originally an experiment to understand dimensions proposed by string theory models, my process oriented sculptures become examples that juxtapose human ingenuity with mass-produced disposable material.
Visitors attending the opening reception are invited to exchange their Common Fold postcard invitation for a piece of sculpture from the installation to take home. Throughout the exhibition visitors are encouraged to contribute magazines and catalogues through the Divisadero Community Gallery’s drop-mail box for ongoing incorporation.
Located at 537 Divisadero St. in San Francisco between Fell and Hayes Streets, the Divisadero Community Gallery will be open Monday-Friday, 5-9pm, Sunday 12-6pm and is open by appointment. For more information go to www.divisaderocommunitygallery.blogspot.com or www.nikishapiro.com