Chasing Rabbits with Andrew Ross
After graduating from Cooper Union in 2011, artist Andrew Ross launched into two back-to-back residencies—heading first to Skowhegan, Maine, and then to Switzerland. Now back in New York, he’s hitting the ground running with his first solo exhibition at Signal Gallery in Bushwick, Brooklyn. For his debut, Ross wanted to demonstrate the diversity of his practice, which ranges from sculpture to photography. Here, he breaks down the bit and pieces.
Ross’s “Dog Chases Rabbit” is on view until October 4th, Signal Gallery, 260 Johnson Avenue, Brooklyn, ssiiggnnaall.com.
1
Ross in the backyard of Signal.
2
“I use a lot of waste molds. I’ll make a big object that couldn’t stand up on its own and then create a mold that enables it to exist in the world. Looking at the final piece, you can’t necessarily see those underlying support structures, but they are there.”
3
“I’m not trying to be specific to a reference—but I think the amount of food imagery in the show evokes this sense of a café.”
4
”I was in a group show at the Drawing Center this summer. It was a big challenge because it was medium specific. I was invited to help expand the definition of what a drawing could be. This wall-piece came out of that show.”
5
“I wanted to create something that looked like something between a toy and a real oven. I found a cardboard box that was just the right size, so I ended up casting that in Aqua-Resin.”
6
“I sketch a little bit, but I want the material to alter how the image looks. Not necessarily because I’m a purist, but I think it relates to the content I’m getting at—the idea of labor.”
7
“I hate ordering things online because you never really know what you are going to get. That being said I’m happy to collaborate with the world on things—for instance, I thought this gymnastics mat was going to be a much darker blue.”
8
“I like to build around the thing rather than work directly on them. It’s like building a church with buttresses.”
9
“This piece is called ‘Reclining Exotic Figure’—it’s the antenna made of bamboo that makes it.”
10
“I think what’s interesting about rendering a material in clay is that it becomes a sketch of reality. You can push and pull how accurate the representation is. ”
11
“I get intimidated by judgment because I make a lot of funny work. I remember Seinfeld making the argument on Funny People that comedians are the most judged people on earth. In a way, I think it’s the same for art.”
