Smarter, Faster, Higher

Smarter, Faster, Higher

Dec 5, 2013–Feb 16, 2014

December 5, 2013 – February 16, 2014
Project Space

Featuring Elizabeth Keithline

(SAN ANTONIO, TX) — Contemporary at Blue Star announces an exhibition by Elizabeth Keithline, Smarter, Faster, Higher from December 5, 2013 through February 16, 2014. An Opening Reception will take place Thursday, December 5 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm, and is open and free to the public.

In collaboration with Jeff Keithline, Elizabeth Keithline exhibits an installation of full-scale woven wire trees and human figures. The installation, homage to the Terracotta Army of Xi-an Shaanxi, depicts various figures frozen in a crawl, walking, or running as they spread out across the gallery. They merge upon a ‘pool’ of computer monitors placed on the floor of the room. The monitors depict a movie of a wire figure that constantly divides, repeating over and over the idea of progress through replication. Like Narcissus, one of the figures gazes into the pool, absorbed by the site of his image. Technology represents an opportunity for self-reflection and the potential for self-absorption. Is it an obstacle, a springboard, or both?

ARTIST STATEMENT:

Human beings are biologically programmed to evolve – to become ‘Smarter, Faster, Higher’. Technology has given us new tools with which to accomplish this end. We can potentially increase our mental capacity by simply opening a laptop. However, as far as we may seem to have come from our roots in the natural world, technology mirrors nature in the way it evolves, specifically through replication.