‘An angle of 180 degrees is a straight line or half a circle’ (2007) by Aldo Giannotti
The artist’s mother hanging upside-down.
‘An angle of 180 degrees is a straight line or half a circle’ (2007) by Aldo Giannotti
The artist’s mother hanging upside-down.
Michael Asher, ‘Think small’ (2010)
Asher’s piece is a reproduction of a 1959 print advertisement designed by Doyle, Dane, and Bernbach for the marketing of Volkswagen in the United States. “Think small” was the tagline in the ad and it became the concept of the campaign. Asher’s piece performs a kind of time travel, stretching back a half a century and replaying a historical campaign for our present consideration. When the “Think small” ads came out, America was firmly committed to a post-war economy perpetuated by the rapid growth of consumerism. Going against that grain, the “Think small” message encouraged investment in a reliable, affordable car rather than an oversized, flashy one. Visually and linguistically, the message of the campaign was to consume less, not more. Yet the ad’s critique of big consumerism performed well for corporate capitalism: many cars were sold, and the ad itself is credited with creating a sea change in the way advertising is created.
(the original ad – right-click and ‘view image’ for enlarging)
‘Tunnel’ (2004) by Marjolijn Dijkman and Wouter Osterholt.
Installed at Sign, Groningen (NL).
The intervention consisted of a tunnel built through the gallery space that transformed the non-public space of the gallery into a public space. Removing one of the windows at the front and a garage door at the back allowed twenty-four hour access through the tunnel.