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[20231214]
A PRESERVATION METHOD by BIANCA BONDI at DALLAS CONTEMPORARY [from 20231117 to 20230317]
[Photos: Kevin Todora for Dallas Contemporary]
Multidisciplinary artist Bianca Bondi’s practice involves the activation or elevation of mundane objects through the use of chemical reactions, most often by salt water. The materials she works with are chosen for their potential for mutation or their intrinsic and symbolic properties. Bondi uses both chemistry and the occult sciences to question our representations and reconsider our notions of rituals and beliefs, of cycles with an emphasis on rebirth and regeneration. The artist experiments with specifically chosen natural elements to examine the intrinsic properties, or “energy”, they are said to possess by diverse cultures, and how this energy can be channeled and eventually activated. Bondi’s approach unfolds in monumental and immersive site-specific installations connected to the places in which they exist.
In November 2023, Dallas Contemporary will present Bianca Bondi: A Preservation Method.The exhibition is based on Bondi’s research into The Highway Beautification Act of 1965, passed by Texan President Lyndon B Johnson and inspired by his wife, Lady Bird Johnson, and her passion for the environment. The act was intended to prohibit the building of billboards in natural environments in order to preserve the native plants and wildlife already under risk by the building of highway infrastructure. Since its passing, open-space advocates and commercial companies have battled over the continued placement of thousands of billboards along Texas roads.
As homage to the Highway Beautification Act, Bondi will locate an abandoned billboard in the gallery, displaying its carcass as a relic amongst flora and fauna inspired by the Texas terrain, presenting a monumental artificial landscape representing the struggle between the natural and commercial world. Her exhibition in Dallas will be the artist’s first solo presentation in the United States.
[Text: Emily Edwards / Curator]
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