title: Untitled
artist: Richard Alvin Gessert
materials: 2020 Chinese-style tear-off daily calendar slips
dimension: 61” x 72”
location: Hyde Park, Chicago
This installation consists of daily calendar slips from the time that Illinois’ shelter-in-place order went into effect until Chicago entered Phase 3 of reopening (March 20 to June 3). Every day, the artist added a slip to the installation. The calendar is Chinese in style, and it was purchased from a local Asian immigrant-owned supermarket. These decisions were made in solidarity with the Asian communities that have faced xenophobia as a result of the pandemic. With this display, the artist questions a simplistic tally of the crisis and its impact.
Additionally, each calendar slip showcases a recipe of the day. Upon deinstallation, the artist will form a cookbook using all of the slips.
Richard studied as an undergraduate at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He has shown his work at the Chicago Public Library, the Chicago Art Department, Sullivan Galleries, the Rockford Art Museum, and the Rockford University Art Gallery, among others.
Follow him on Instagram: @richardalvingessert
More on Richard Alvin Gessert's practice
My artwork is informed by the differences between fine art and visual culture. I am interested in how such contexts shape meaning. My work critiques these shared visual languages and the spaces that are constructed between my audience and me. Often, my concerns lie in culture and history, and I address these subjects using democratic forms such as found objects, artist books, and video. Although my practice takes advantage of universal formats, I remain keen on acknowledging that which is marginal.
Window installation: Untitled by Richard Alvin Gessert (click arrow for more images)
Photography by Amy Shelton.
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