handle with care

“They are basically a unit of space owned by a corporation in which to ship objects,” explains Walead Beshty, the London-born author of the FedEx series. The fact that FedEx was able to copyright the dimensions of their boxes – in Beshtys’ own words – this idea of a company being able to “own” an empty volume of air that was only designed to transport goods seemed so surreal to him that it motivated this artwork that turned into a decade-long series.

Since 2007 Beshty constructed glass boxes that would fit inside the FedEx shipping containers, exactly matching their interior dimensions. He send them out to the museums or …. without any padding or additional protection. Then, when the piece arrived to its final destination, it was usually cracked but not totally shattered (Beshty constructed them constructed from shatter-proof glass).

That way, the key element that gives each art-piece its uniqueness happens in transit – the shattering gives each piece its own individual story. 

All of the art pieces were named after the FedEx deliveries: the date of shipment, tracking number and box dimensions, then put on display (e.g.: FedEx® Large Box ©2005 FEDEX 139751 REV 10/05 SSCC, Priority Overnight, Los Angeles-New York trk#795506878000, November 27-28, 2007).

Keep up with Walead’s work online: regenprojects.com/artists/walead-beshty

Sources:
https://weburbanist.com/2017/02/09

Picture from:
https://www.yellowtrace.com.au/walead-beshty-fedex-works/ 

mirrored tombstones

“From a distance, the mirrors shine brightly but the closer you get the less attractive they become because they reflect reality,” says Parisian artist, Kader Attia, speaking on his series “Holy Land”. The environment altering installations of mirrored tombstones have been displayed in two locations, one on the Canary Islands and the other in the countryside of Tucson. Attia’s Interest lies in the conflict of identity, specifically cultural backgrounds and ethnicity.

Upon visiting Holy Land, people are firstly confronted with stunning and lively reflections, but upon further consideration, they also find a strong reminder of their own mortality.

The French-Algerian artist has always been interested in the conflicts of identity, particularly in regard to cultural backgrounds and ethnicity. For Holy Land, he chose to place the material items within nature in order to form an uncomfortable tension and to remind us of our own individuality, as well as our “human vanity and the desire to dominate nature.”

Keep up with Kader’s work online: http://kaderattia.de

Sources:
https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/street-art/kader-attias-mirrored-tombstones/
http://mymodernmet.com/kader-attia-holy-land/

Picture from:
http://kaderattia.de