Contemporary Arts Center
Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center
for Contemporary Art
44 E. 6th Street,
Cincinnati, OH 45202

513 345 8400

Donate
Today!

The Living Room

Started
18 May
2013

Ended
02 September
2013

Exhibition Highlights

Exhibition Details

An exciting project addressing the concept of place-making through a series of room vignettes, each involving the viewer in an intimate conversation with the space and the work.

The Living Room features site-specific installations, prints and decorative objects by local artists whose unique practices overlap with contemporary craft—Paul Coors, Guy Michael Davis, Terence Hammonds, Katie Parker, and design collective Such + Such. Delicately tethering themselves to Cincinnati's rich history of decorative craft production and skilled artisanal trades, these artists have forged their own paths by breaking new ground, each taking dynamic new approaches in redefining traditional processes and traditional spaces. They remix materials and content, inject whimsy and subversion into the aesthetic conversation, creating natural and unnatural tensions that draw the viewer in and beg for closer inspection.

The exhibition presents several types of "living spaces". The sitting area features an elaborately tiled fireplace as the main focal point, a custom-made sofa, a "bearskin" rug sculpted from wood, ceramic chandeliers and wall treatments incorporating both print and projection. To create the fireplace’s unique surround, the artists worked with legendary Rookwood Pottery Co. While it draws on the history of Rookwood and Cincinnati, it incorporates elements such as the artists' own personal aesthetics, presenting a contemporary narrative on the notion of hearth and home.

The dining area holds a sunken dining table and very low hanging light fixtures, forcing intimacy among those who gather there. The rear of the gallery is conceived of as a private exterior space, a "backyard" where a large tree house takes advantage of that part of the gallery's increased height and light.

Functioning as a type of living space, the exhibition is considered complete when visitors occupy it. Additionally, the space will be used to host various programs and performances during the run.

Curated by

Justine Ludwig

Share this Page