We are thrilled to share that Benjamin Spalding MFA ’17, interdisciplinary artist and teacher for our Sculpture and Foundations departments, has a solo exhibition on view until October 16 at Real Art Ways in Hartford, Connecticut. The show, titled SUPERNATURE, was curated by David Borawski.
As Spalding explains in an artist statement, “SUPERNATURE is a sculptural tableau inspired by the 1977 disco hit by the same name, produced by Cerrone with lyrics by Lene Lovich. Set to a sweaty disco tempo, this song takes a darker turn, narrating humanity’s careless harm to the environment and the monsters that rise up to seek revenge. Although seemingly sinister, the song ends with a hopeful call for humans to renegotiate their relationship to, and commune with the environment.”
Gallery-goers will experience art that combines large scale figurative dancers, VHS sculptural works, and speculative records to reflect queer nightlife while pondering biodiversity and pageantry.
Spalding’s exploration of movement and the pageantry of the body takes inspiration from his Puerto Rican grandfather’s profession as a big band leader and the eight years the artist spent in Berlin’s club culture while defining his studio practice. Upon resettling in Maine, Spalding’s practice expanded to work with family photographs, found images, sporting equipment, and local ecology. Spalding has also worked as part of the creative force behind Visceral, a queer techno part in Boston and also has work on view until October 30 in the Watch This Space: Expressions of Queer Ecology by Maine College of Art & Design Alumni at the Sarah Orne Jewett House Museum in South Berwick, Maine.
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