Chris Domenick: STAGE
In conjunction with the project Archipelago, 2019
October 10–December 8, 2019
Opening Reception: October 10, 7–9pm
Hunter College Art Galleries
Leubsdorf Gallery Atrium - West Lobby
132 E. 68th Street, New York, NY
Archipelago is a project by artist Chris Domenick composed of five kitchen islands occupying various sites around New York City. Throughout the fall of 2019, each island will have its own event—some islands will inhabit their spaces for a day, some for a month, some for longer. For seven weeks STAGE will live in the Atrium of the Leubsdorf Gallery in the West Lobby of Hunter College, a space activated by public events like voting, blood drives, and gallery openings. STAGE is presented concurrently with the exhibition Robert Morris: Para-architectural projects, on view at the Bertha and Karl Leubsdorf Gallery October 10–December 1, 2019. The exhibition brings together a selection of large ink-on-paper drawings that illustrate a fantasy architectural complex.
Domenick’s approach to making work and his choice of materials have consistently been inspired by American suburban landscapes, interior and surface architecture, and historical sites across the country—both abandoned and active. The islands: DOCK, STAGE, STATUE, STORAGE, and FOUNTAIN evoke the open concept floor plan of domestic architecture—an aspirational class trope. Additionally, the works’ titles and locations highlight the metonymic properties of each piece. STAGE produces a social space, latent with the performativity of its inhabitants. Built with a contractor's touch, it is faux-finished like a theater prop, its top prepared with a fresh coat of black paint for opening night. To accompany STAGE, a “User's Guide” written by Daniel Marcus offers guidelines on “how to behave” in the performative kitchen inspired by Julia Child’s media personality.
Chris Domenick (b. 1982, Philadelphia) received an MFA from Hunter College, City University of New York and has participated in residencies at The Shandaken Project, New York; The Sharpe-Walentas Space Program New York; Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, ME; and Recess Activities, New York; among others. Recent projects include Plumbat Motel, Brooklyn, NY; The Porch The Openat 14a, Hamburg, DE; Your Shell Is In the Unending, (in collaboration with Em Rooney) at The Beeler Gallery, Columbus, OH; Particulate Paper Records of Timein Cabinet Magazine; and 5 O D A Y Sat MASSMoCA, North Adams, MA. He has been included in exhibitions at Canada Gallery, New York; The Queens Museum, Queens, NY; Skibum MacArthur, Los Angeles; The Vanity East, Los Angeles; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Essex Flowers, New York; Situations, New York; Regina Rex, New York; and Room East, New York; among others. Domenick currently co-curates the project space GERTRUDE in Stockbridge, MA with Em Rooney.
