The premise behind the Picket Fence project is to take an every day object and change it, thus altering its meaning.
To me, white picket fences represent a concrete symbol of the ideal of American life. This is the American Ideal as it was present to me growing up. To change this ideal is to challenge the idea that there is only ONE ideal - not many.
Rather than recreate a white picket fence in a gallery setting I have chosen to use existing picket fences to 'alter'. This puts the art simultaneously at an advantage and a disadvantage.
The benefit is that the art is out in the public, open to raw interpretation. People may not even know they are viewing 'art' without it being enclosed in the traditional gallery setting.
The downside is that the art is out in public, and people may not even know they are viewing 'art'.
Either way, if the piece causes a viewer to look, look again, and leave with questions, then it is successful.
What is the Project?
Currently I'm only focusing on one project, listed below, altho there are certainly other projects involving picket fences in the works.
The installation can be done on both a permanent or temporary basis. If a temporary installation is requested I will have a carpenter make a new picket to be attached to the fence after the pieces is taken down.
I would like to leave each piece up for one year. Other time frames may be negotiated on a per site basis.
#1: The fence will have the top of one picket removed. The picket will be sanded down and painted to match the rest of the fence. This will leave a litteral gap in the way that people view the fence, and thus the property, and thus the ideal. Because the picket will be neatly and professionally done it will not appear broken. It will be deliberate - causing the viewer to question.
This website will be further developed in the next week.
Updated 8/7/04
