Spinello Projects
Two ominous words appear in the event of imminent defeat or certain termination of an athletic, intellectual or entertaining pursuit: Game Over. This message carries a series of heavy dualities: a sense of crushing disappointment versus lightweight relief, the cries of the victor against the silence of the conquered, the fleeting highs of winners disappear more quickly than the grinding determination of those who lose. Inevitably, when we all exit life’s mad amusement park, those words hold the promise of a definite end, but one we may face with a certain acceptance and tongue-in-cheek humor.
Miami-based artist Typoe toys with this existential tug-o-war in his solo exhibition Game Over, addressing mortality with defiant visual exercises steeped in aggressive, bold colors and bone-dry wit. His shameless parodies of death and consumer culture in the shiny guises of Conceptualism (pioneered by artists such as Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, John Currin and the fraternal duo of Jake and Dinos Chapman) are inflated even further, nearly to the point of explosion. A classic ‘Twister’ board is enlarged to gigantic proportions by joining several of the color-spot plastic sheets together. A double entendre is loosed; citing Hirsts’ interest in the visual qualities of pharmaceutical chemical compositions and the wry suggestiveness of sexual adventures made possible long after the innocence of the children’s game is faded. The show’s central work, where a classic ‘Have A Nice Day’ smiley face (which is actually a functional ‘piggy bank’) confronts a bleached skull, is a simultaneous battle cry and death wish. Facing death can be all at once funny, sad, terrifying and exhilarating, but at it’s core is simply two sides of the same element: life (in many cases, shaped to horde money) is death, death is life.
Special Event:
Dec 3, 7pm – 10pm | Opening reception
- Artists:
Typoe - Open:
Wednesday, 04 December 2013 - Close:
Sunday, 08 December 2013 - Address:
Spinello Projects, 2930 NW 7th Avenue, Miami - Web:
Spinello Projects - Opening hour:
10am – 8pm - Photo credits:
Typoe, Game Over (Detail), Found ceramic happy face bank, human skull with two gold teeth, plexiglass, Site specific, Dimensions variable 2013
