Relics
November 8, 2014 – January 24, 2015
Relics is a group exhibition that explores the consequences of today’s accelerated embrace of new technology as well as the political, social and environmental consequences of technical and functional obsolescence.
Curated by ICA Executive Director Cathy Kimball, the exhibition will include work by a wide range of artists from the Bay Area and beyond, including Jim Campbell, Ching Ching Cheng, Max de Esteban, Kathryn Dunlevie, Genevieve Hastings, Victoria Mara Heilweil, Ferit Kuyas, Shona Macdonald, MANUAL (Hill & Bloom), David Pace, Ulrike Palmbach, Francesca Pastine, Lucy Puls, Nicola Vruwink and Stephen Wirtz. Running through January 24, Relics is comprised of photographs, sculptures, works on paper and video that serve as forensic testimonies of dead technologies.
From GPS navigation systems to the abundance of social media sites, advancements in technology over the past decade have dramatically changed the world. They affect how we live, how we do business, how we acquire information and how we communicate. Dozens of devices and formats that were once considered cutting-edge technology are now regarded as obsolete. Many common items that were once ubiquitous have vanished from our lives. Typewriters, pagers, 8-track tapes, walkmans, answering machines, slides and slide projectors are true relics of the past. How does our society dispose of these antiquated objects of recent history? What is the effect of society’s desire to “upgrade” at every time a new technological advancement is announced?
Talking Art
Future Shock: The Consequences of Technology Consumption
Thursday, January 22 at 7pm
$5 for ICA Members
$10 for non-Members
Free for Students
Greenmouse Growing Sculpture Project and Partnership
During the run of the show, the ICA will collect e-waste in the Project Room. Visitors are invited to leave their used technological items for recycling during gallery hours. The items will contribute to a “growing sculpture” that will serve as a testament to the ecological issues raised by the exhibition. The ICA will document the accumulation and post “progress reports” via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #RecycleRelics. All items will be properly discarded via GreenMouse Recycling. Please ensure your equipment can be carried by yourself or with one other person.