Corey Arcangel

Corey Arcangel, Pro Tools, a show at the Whitney Museum, May to September 2011

Corey Arcangel works with computer games, Photoshop, sunglasses, and other contemporary devices and media.  Perhaps the most astonishing work is a series dancing shelves which move in coordination and are rather hypnotizing.  Like most of his work they take off the shelf equipment and modify it to do unexpected and often frustrating things.

The first piece in the show covering an entire wall as you leave the elevator is a set of six bowling games, each screen perhaps 9 x 12 feet, arranged chronologically and rigged so that the player always throws a gutter ball.  It is overwhelming at first, puzzling, leaving you with a rather irritated and sad feeling.  But don’t we often feel that way about technology?  We are in charge but not in charge.  It contrasts amateur vs. processional tools, things working as expected and not, objects and art, glamour and utility.

Viewers cannot interact with the bowling games but in the next gallery is golf ball game where you can hit the ball with a club under the close supervision of a museum guard.  Also interesting were a series of Photoshop pieces, huge sleek chromogenic prints of gradient demonstrations (88 x 64 inches) named for the color settings used to make them.  Presumably you could do it yourself if you had a big enough printer.

Cory Arcangel is a 32 year old artist, programmer and stand-up comedian living in Brooklyn.  His web-site, www.coryarcangel.com is well worth a visit and the Wikipedia entry is also worth reading.