Slyk Chaynjis
dal 31/10/2013 al 27/12/2013
Segnalato da
31/10/2013
Slyk Chaynjis
DiverseWorks, Houston
Using social personae to investigate the construction of self, Heather and Ivan Morison engage with materials, histories, sites, and processes to create performance-based and site-specific works, often in the public realm.
DiverseWorks has commissioned UK-based artists Heather and Ivan Morison to create their first major project in the United States, Slyk Chaynjis. Using social personae to investigate the construction of self, Heather and Ivan Morison engage with materials, histories, sites, and processes to create performance-based and site-specific works, often in the public realm. Through peripatetic travels, the Morisons have previously produced sculptures, photographs, architectural structures, shelters, puppet performances, radio plays, and fiction.
Slyk Chaynjis is both the name of the exhibition and the protagonist in a fictional narrative about an unlikely pair of travelers on an epic journey. The Morisons' dark comedy unfolds over the course of six acts and in multiple locations—inside and outside of DiverseWorks—and unpacks the construction of "self" as a performance provoked by personal trauma, psychological breakdown, and ethical discrepancy. On the road to places unknown and for purposes unclear, Slyk and her companion struggle to reconcile internal truths with public perceptions as they resolutely forge ahead into a future filled with delusion, enchantment, and fleeting hope.
Inside the private space of the gallery, Slyk tells her tale with objects and personal interactions with visitors who have entered into her realm. While inside, she is in doubt of her identity, oscillating between her past and present personae. It is when she embarks outside for daily excursions with her companion—part servant, part son—that she is "on stage" and fully in character. They stop on street corners: she delivering proclamations, dance performances, and stories; and he serving alternatingly as patsy, assistant, protector, and observer. They are an odd couple, contrasting in every physical sense, but their differences create a greater whole and their actions feel choreographed through a long familiarity with one another.
About the artists
Heather Peak was born in Desborough, UK in 1973 and Ivan Morison in Istanbul, Turkey in 1974. Currently they live and work between Brighton and North Wales. The Morisons represented Wales at the 52nd Venice Biennale and have had solo exhibitions of their works at important venues such as: The Tate Modern, Whitechapel Gallery, The Southbank Centre London, Milton Keynes, The Hepworth Wakefield, Vancouver Art Gallery, and the Camden Arts Centre.
Image: Heather and Ivan Morison, Ciudad Juarez, Slyk Chaynjis, 2013
For further inquiries or to be added to our press email list, please email
Jennifer Gardner, Director of External Affairs or call (713) 223-8346 jennifer@diverseworks.org
Opening Reception Friday, November 1, 7 - 9 pm
DiverseWorks
4102 Fannin, Suite 200 Houston, TX 77004 (entrance on Cleburne between Fannin and Main)
Gallery Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, Noon-6pm or by appointment.
Admission is open to the public and free