moniquemeloche 2154 W. Division Street, Chicago, IL 60622 773.252.0299 www.moniquemeloche.com

PastintoFuture

SanfordBiggersonhistoryatworkBYSARACOHEN|MARCH8,2016

OnadrearyeveninginFebruary,asthesoundofgunshotsreverberatesthroughawhitewashedroom,anumberofindividualsapproachitssource.Thisisnocrimescene.Rather,thesebulletblastsissuefromavideodocumentingthe inceptionof two sculptures of esteemed interdisciplinary artist SanfordBiggers. Both the film, playingon acontinuous loop, and the sculptures it features are elements of Biggers’s temporary exhibition at theMoniqueMelocheGallery,entitled“thepaststheybroughtwiththem.”

“It’s part of the larger phrase, ‘the pasts theybrought with them will enable us to change ourfuture,’”saidBiggersoftheexhibition’stitle.“I’vealwaysbeeninterestedinourabilitytochangeourfuturebyknowingaboutourpasts,sothatphraseissortofapoeticwayofsayingthat.”

Heexploresthisthemeinavarietyofwaysinthepieces on display at Monique Meloche. On thewallshangvibrantandmultifacetedtextilepieces.Acrylic and spray paint overlay strata of fabric,serving to color, complicate, and amplify thematerial onwhich they areplaced: historic quiltsfromtheUndergroundRailroadera.

“I was doing some research on the UndergroundRailroad,and I found thatquiltswereusedassignpostsontheUndergroundRailroadtocommunicatewhether a safe house was opened or closed, or sometimes even [to give] directions,” Biggers explained.“Conceptuallythatgotmeveryinterestedintheideaofaddinganotherlayerofmeaningorcodetothemhundredsofyearsaftertheoriginalonesweremade.”

Inhisartmaking,Biggersdescribeshimselfas“defiantly,alwaysinterdisciplinary.”

“Mywork explores several different themes, creating tension through use of clips ranging from old Fat AlbertcartoonstoBuddhistmonksmakingsandmandalas,to1960sfilmnoir…Iamnotsointerestedinmakingasingularsignaturestyle—Ifindthatverylimiting—butI’minterestedinfindingdifferentwaystocommunicatevariousideas.”

NativetoLosAngelesandNewYork-based,BiggerscreditsChicagoforfurtheringhisprolificcareer.“IwenttotheArtInstituteofChicagoformymasters,andI’vedebutedinChicagoseveraltimesoverthelastfifteenyears,andI’malsooneoftheBoardMembersattheSchooloftheArtInstituteofChicago,”hesaid.Localartists,includingBrianSikes,KerryJamesMarshall,andthelateRayYoshida,hadasignificantinfluenceonhiswork.

DetailshotofDAGU,Assortedfabrics,spraypaint,andacryliconantiquequilts,SanfordBiggers

moniquemeloche 2154 W. Division Street, Chicago, IL 60622 773.252.0299 www.moniquemeloche.com

At “the pasts they brought with them,” Biggers’s piece “DAGU” zig-zags across the wall. It is named after thecommunicationsystemusedbytheAfar,amigratorypeopleofnortheasternEthiopia.

“Theyusedtowalkhundredsofmilesaday,”explainsBiggers,“Butastheywalk,theirpeoplecrossdirections,sothattheylearneverythingthat’shappeninginonedirection,andtheothergrouplearnseverythingintheoppositedirection.Sothentheyexchange,endingupsothattheyknoweverything.”

Comparably, theelementsof“DAGU” interactand informoneanother; stripsofhand-stitched,geometric fabricfragmentsbindtheantiquequiltpiecestogether,embellishedbyspiderlikemetallicpaintsplattersandcolorfulyetominousclouds.

Theother largertextilepiece,“HatandBeard”, isatrueamalgamationofseveraloftheexhibition’soverarchingthemes,speakingsimultaneouslytoracistdisguiseandobscured identityaswellascultural fusionandtemporaloverlap.

“ThiswasapaintingthatIwasstrugglingwith,soIputonanoldsongbya jazzmusician I love,EricDolphyfromthealbumOuttoLunch!Myfavoritesongonthatalbumiscalled‘HatandBeard.’Ialsolike the double entendre of ‘hat and beard’—actually,the‘beard’canbetheheterosexualmaskofahomosexualperson.SoIsortoflikedtheplaybetweenthosetwoideas.”

This ideaofmaskingmanifests in the layers thatcompose the surface of “Hat and Beard.” Mostprominentisthecenteredoutlineofasmilingpairoflipsinthinlypaintedblack,encagedinacobaltblue grid thatmimics the original antique quilt’sgrid-likepattern.Thelipshape,whichhasbeenamotifinmanyofBiggers’spreviousworks,alludestoboththedisappearingfigureoftheCheshireCat

andthedemeaningblackfacemakeupofminstrelshowplayersintheearlynineteenthcentury.

On pedestals in the center of the room rest the bronze sculptures whose construction through violentdeconstructionisdocumentedintheaforementionedvideo,“BAM.”

“Ihadbeencollectingwoodenfiguresforfifteenyears,”Biggerssaid,“andwiththemI’ddoneasmallpiecehereandthere,butitwasneveraconcentratedseriesorbodyofwork.SowhenIcameupwiththisrecentideaitwasinresponsetoreadingnewspapersandwatchingnewsreportsofmultipleshootingsofunarmedcitizens.”

DAGUandHat&Beard,SanfordBiggers,ImagecourtesyoftheartistandMoniqueMelocheGallery

moniquemeloche 2154 W. Division Street, Chicago, IL 60622 773.252.0299 www.moniquemeloche.com

“ForMichael”and“ForSandra”arebronzereplicasofthealteredwoodeneffigies,stainedwithadarkblackpatina.Missingchunksandbulletholesmarthefemininefigureof“Sandra”;notably,her faceand left arm are entirely severed. Similarly,“Michael”standssomberlyononeleg;hisotherismerelyastump,andagreatblockismissingfromthebackofhishead.

DespitethedirectreferencetotheMichaelBrownand Sandra Bland cases of racially-charged policebrutality, Biggers wanted the significance of thisseriestobeevenmorebroadinscope:“Obviouslythere’s a lot of these events happening, evenspecificallyhappeninginChicagointhepastseveralyears, but they’re happening everywhere.Unfortunately,it’sawidespreadepidemic.”

Equally as impactful as the end product of thesemasterfullytransfiguredmemorials,overtlyandunapologeticallypoliticalinnature,isthemethodicalprocessthatwentintotheircreation.

“Idippedtheminbrownwaxjusttomakethemabitmoreabstractanderasetheiridentity,andthenItookthemtoashootingrangeandIsculptedthefigureswithbullets,asasymbolicgesture.ThenItooktheremainingfragmentsofthosesculpturesandcasttheminbronze,sowhatyou’llseeatthegalleryarethebronzecastings.”

In“BAM”,thisdisfiguringisillustratedthroughawidearrayoffilmictechniques:slowmotion,reversechronology,extremeclose-ups,rapidlyvaryingcuts,andamplifiedsound.Shardsofwoodexplodeandrotateinmidairasthebulletscomeincontactwiththefigures.Then,justasthevideoends,“Michael’s”legisblownoutfromunderhim,andhedramaticallyandpivotallycollapses.

Towardstheendoftheexhibition’srun,BiggershopestoperformwithhisbandMoonMedicin,whichcomposespiecesthroughaprocessofcompilingandreinterpretingclipsfromthepastinthecontextofassortedcultural,geographical,andperiod-specificmusicalmodes.

In response to the projected impact this exhibition will have on viewers, Biggers expects diverse, idiosyncraticreactions.“There’sgreatrelevancebecausea lotofcommunities inChicagohavebroughtpastswiththem.Firstthere’stheGreatMigration,butthere’salsothePolish,Irish—there’satonofdifferentgroupshere…Ithinkitreallydependsontheexperiencesaviewerbringstotheexhibition:‘thepaststheybringwiththem.’”

SanfordBiggers,ImagecourtesyoftheartistandMoniqueMelocheGallery