Strangely Familiar is art for the mind

Strangely Familiar is just that—strange and familiar. The Walker has conceived yet another conceptual show. Strangely Familiar does deserve time and attention, if you can afford it. It is meant for people who have time to ponder the interesting subtleties of day-to-day life. This show houses art for the mind, not necessarily for the soul. The perfect audience would be art enthusiasts and esthetes, or just those who are bogged down with ennui. Strangely Familiar is laden with conceptual in jokes. It is art with lots of clever metaphors for daily life.

Frank Tyerpkema and Peter Van Der Jagt have created “do it” sculpture. A vase just for breaking called “do break,” a chandelier that doubles as a swing called “do swing,” and a stainless steel cube that has been smashed into a sort of chair called “do hit.” All artwork comes with photos documenting the “do” part. The photos show seemingly average people, breaking vases, swinging on chandeliers, and smashing things. It’s amusing.

There is a GPS table from the Placebo Project. This is a square wooden table with a metal strip on top of it. The metal strip is a global positioning sensor. The GPS only displays its position when it can see its satellites. The rest of time it is lost and indicates this. The creators statement says “the ideal owner will need a conservatory, a large window or garden so it can connect with its satellite and fulfill its potential. We like the idea that people might feel a little cruel keeping it indoors.” Basically it is a very expensive, impersonal, immobile pet. Are we to attach emotional significance to this inanimate object that doesn’t even pretend to be emotionally available? Is the thesis of this piece to anthropomorphize an end table, and then cynically laugh at ourselves, or is there some sort of “higher power/ everything is connected to the life flow” message here?

Boym Partners Inc., have created sculpture from calamities. Their premise is that catastrophic events transform ordinary places and anonymous structures into historical landmarks. They have created numerous small gray sculptures made from cast-bonded nickel. Their subject matter includes: the World Trade Centers I & II, the Oklahoma bombing, Chernobyl, the Pentagon, Three Mile Island, Waco, and, my favorite, the O.J. car chase. It is droll to see the toy car version of that infamous car chase.

It is important to spend time with these pieces. The show is consistently very clever, and it does get you to rethink the familiar. However it is a little like that mediocre Hollywood movie you loved when you saw it, but forgot about completely as you walked out of the theater.

The Walker is known for its outstanding curatorial work, as well as its permanent collection. Currently on view are several floors of their brilliant permanent collection. My favorites are the Kara Walker pieces. Kara Walker is a MacArthur genius grant recipient, and it shows in her work. Black silhouettes painted on the wall depict explicit imagery. Sometimes sexual, sometimes violent, always challenging, these vignettes are both shocking and gorgeous. Walker’s subject matter always consists of African American and white figures in contorted poses acting out horrifying dramas. The characters are from our very own slavery era. We see them painfully depict belittling, humbling and horrifying scenes. The piece on view is appropriately titled “Endless Conundrum, an African Anonymous Adventure.”

We are lucky to have the Walker Art Center. It is a world-renowned museum. If you don’t like the show, at least it’s free (on Thursdays and the first Saturday of the month) and it’s air conditioned. Which means a lot in July.

Strangely Familiar continues through Sept. 7. Walker Art Center is located at 725 Vineland Place, Mpls. 612-375-7622.