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Exhibition: 23 Feb–9 Sept 2012

smartloft apt&art is proud to present Time Capsule with works by Ivan Bošković, Alexine Chanel, Woori Cho and Patrick Jambon, Chan Sook Choi, Carson Grubaugh, Dan Hudson, Elana Katz, Gwen MacGregor, Rachel Simkover, and Latefa Wiersch, curated and organized by Thomas Arnold and kate hers.

With performances by:

Ivan Bošković (ongoing)

Alexine Chanel (6:30pm + 8pm)

Woori Cho and Patrick Jambon (6pm, 7pm, 8pm)

Elana Katz (ongoing)

7:30pm Welcome by smartloft

A Time Capsule is a container storing a selection of objects chosen as being typical of the present time, buried for discovery in the future. At this moment in human history, four time capsules have been launched into space— two Pioneer Plaques and the two Voyager Golden Records with the hope that other civilized spacefarers will find them. In 2014 the KEO satellite will be sent into space with individual messages from earthlings to be read by future earthlings when the satellite returns to earth in the year 52,000. Famous Time Capsule historian William E. Jarvis stated that time capsules are significant attempts to transfer cultural information across the millennia, however most are usually not very effective or educational because items placed in the capsules are either in pristine condition or tell little about the people of that time.*

In the exhibit Time Capsule we attempt to surpass the conventional traits of such a capsule by considering the question: What does it mean to be human? What would you submit as a symbol of humanity? “Artworks” at smartloft apt&art are presented as a significant collection of objects, ideas, and documents from international visual artists. We explore how an offering of creativity could communicate with aliens and/or people of the future. Can art represent humankind to extraterrestrials?

The participating artists from Canada, France, Germany, Korea, Serbia, and the United States grapple with these questions in various artistic and conceptual forms. Each of the artists brings his/her own approach to formulating a notion of a cultural artifact preserved in book art, drawing, installation, performance, printmaking, photography, video, and sculpture. History, memory, heritage and time are several themes which are engaged. Additionally, the most famous unintentional time capsule Pompeii resonates with the show’s intention that the best objects to be placed in a time capsule are idiosyncratic, handmade and significant to the individual who created them. Just like the compelling graffiti phrase “All the sleepyheads are voting for Petronius” found on a Pompeii wall is a relevant cultural artifact, our Time Capsule exhibition underscores not only does art matter, but also creative expression is a condition of being human.

* Jarvis, William E., Time Capsules: A Cultural History, 2002.