In his work, the artist Daniel Arsham does not dictate a choice between the two. Instead, he draws out spaces between time(s); a floating dimension between time periods.

Espace Louis Vuitton currently features Arsham’s solo exhibition titled “#YesterdaysFutures (Part 1)”. The exhibits consist of a selection of drawings and installation artwork, presented as a sort of “fictional archaeology”. The installation pieces appear as modern-day consumer products that have crumbled and eroded over time, essentially, relics from the future. The tones of black, grey and white in the artwork emphasise the bleaching effect wrought by time on the corporeal. In speaking of his work, Arsham references the ruins of Pompeii, and describes the objects as being “frozen in time”.

The objects appear assembled in a random fashion, and display a sort of arbitrariness in being ‘left behind’. Arsham lists Merce Cunningham and John Cage as his influences and identifies the notion of chance as a primary element in his work. However, since the objects are displayed in glass cases, and in a sense, having been selected for show, there seems to be a paradoxical working of intention amidst arbitrariness. The art thus appears to instigate a continual challenging (and subversion) of assumptions.

October 2013
Words for Esquire Singapore
Images courtesy of the artist and Galerie Perroti