Color markers and pencil on frosted Mylar; triptychexpand_more
Gift of James Cahn and Jeremiah Collatzexpand_more 2015.98a-c
For American artist Chadwick Rantanen, the notion of banality and “fitting in” lies at the heart of his conceptual approach. This set of three abstract drawings—each very similar and all suggesting Cy Twombly’s calligraphic style—seem in their fervid self-expression to contradict his philosophy of benign objects. But the drawings close similarity to one another and thus lack of uniqueness actually reinforces Rantanen’s attempts to depersonalize and thwart their capacity to convey meaning. The artist’s use of a frosted Mylar substrate and matless floating mounts, which allows light to pass through the double-sided glazing and the drawing itself, are non-traditional ways to create and exhibit drawings, signaling that not everything is as it first appears. Although conceptually challenging, Rantanen’s unusual approach to imagemaking encourages curiosity, letting some of his ideas on the meaning of art to come to the forefront.
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