IN/TRACTION 002: LADDERS, 2023
12 8’ ALUMINUIM LADDERS, MOTORS, ROPE
INSTALLATION, SIZE VARIABLE
IN/TRACTION 002: LADDERS featured 12 8 foot aluminum double sided ladders, each ladder tethered to a low rpm, high torque motor. Each motor was programmed to run a fully randomized duration each day over the 81 day exhibition creating an ever-evolving random arrangement of forms in space. Orientations of the ladders, in the room and in relation to each other, was dictated by the randomization of the programming and chance distribution caused by the movements. Over the course of the exhibition the ladders went through a series of actions- tipping, falling, dragging, lifting, scraping, bending. The movement of the ladders at any one point in time was hardly perceptible. The installation moved at such an extremely slow pace that, though in constant motion, the work seemed still though the evidence of catastrophic motion was overwhelmingly present.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
Curated by Miranda Lash, MCA Denver's Senior Curator and Leilani Lynch, MCA Denver’s Associate Curator
The exhibition, Breakthroughs: A Celebration of RedLine at 15, opening February 24, 2023, will be a collaboration with RedLine Contemporary Art Center to celebrate their fifteenth anniversary of artist residencies and fostering education and engagement between artists and communities to create positive social change. Breakthroughs: A Celebration of RedLine at 15 will present a juried group exhibition featuring the work of RedLine alumni artists, including past participants in RedLine’s Artist Resident and Resource Artist program.
The exhibition reflects the current creative practice of artists living in Colorado, as well as artists who have recently lived in the Denver area. Breakthroughs will present artworks made within the last two years, the majority of which will be on view for the first time in Denver.
"RedLine has nurtured and supported dozens of artists who continue to contribute to the dynamic community of creatives across the region. It is an honor to highlight the important role RedLine has played since its inception in advancing creative practice and building a rich network of artists who continue to imprint and inform cultural life of our city, and beyond," said Nora Burnett Abrams, MCA Denver Mark G. Falcone Director.
“For the past 15 years, RedLine’s residency has had the deep privilege of supporting the careers of over 120 artists in Colorado — but not all have had the incredible opportunity to have their work seen or shown at MCA Denver. This collaboration is yet another example of how Denver’s contemporary art ecosystem of institutions, organizations, and artists can work together to amplify the works of artists and their vital contribution to culture and our city ” said Louise Martorano, Executive Director of RedLine Contemporary Art Center.
The jurors for this exhibition include Sarah Kate Baie, MCA Denver Director of Programming, Jaime Carrejo, RedLine alumni artist, Louise Martorano, RedLine Executive Director, Miranda Lash, MCA Denver Ellen Bruss Senior Curtator, and Leilani Lynch, MCA Denver Associate Curator.