Derek Stroup
EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY: Installation and Works on Paper
November 16th - December 16th, 2007
EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, is a large scale installation by conceptual artist Derek Stroup. The installation will occupy the main space of the gallery and continue into an adjoining room. An exhibition of small works on paper - also by Mr. Stroup - each measuring 6" x 9", numbering 60, entitled, Unrented Billboards, will be presented in the project space of the gallery. This is the first time they are publicly exhibited.
DEREK STROUP is an artist presently consumed with investigating the experience of language, the communication of information, and the visual perception of the common conduit of intelligible data.
The sculpture, EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, is conceived on a monumental scale. Each letter, approximately 24 inches in height, is cut from plywood, painted red and subsequently hinged with wire to the next letter forming the word of the sentence. Completed the sentence measures 18 feet long. Each letter is hinged to gently move. The sentence, visible from all angles is akin to a roller coaster configuration. Words snake, hang and sprout from the confinement and restriction of the gallery space. The experience of reading, traditionally a passive moment in time, is challenged by the architecture of the installation. Ultimately, the artist is asking the spectator to be physically engaged with the act of consuming information. He is deconstructing language for the viewer to better experience its codified significance.
EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, is one from a series of sculptures the artist has been working on since 2006. Mr. Stroup is the author of Field Guide (2002), Rope Swing Manifesto (2004) and Candy (2006). A selection of Mr. Stroup's books will be available at the gallery. Mr. Stroup's books are also available at Printed Matter, Inc. (195 Tenth Avenue New York, NY 10011). The online version of Rope Swing Manifesto can be viewed at www.ropeswingmanifesto.com.
This is Mr. Stroup's first solo exhibition at the A.M. Richard gallery.