Dwell presents the work of six contemporary artists who ask us to consider how we occupy space, and how we spend our time in relation to materials, history, others.  What does it mean to claim a material reality as one’s own, or to move into the virtual world with expectations of habitation – of staking identity?  Dwelling is an object and an action– and also an ambiguous unit of time spent on an idea, in a moment, re-considering.  “To dwell” can mean to live, to inhabit for a while, to spend time with, to come back to repeatedly. It is an inquiry into what makes places important to us, and why we pass time under certain conditions.  Artist Laurie Anderson once asked, “What are days for? To wake us up." 

The Contemporary Artists Center premieres its provocative curatorial vision with Dwell, an outdoor exhibition series that examines the intersection between art and the built environment. Co-curated by Leah Rico and Michael Oatman, Dwell features the work of six artists and touches on themes as diverse as dreamed utopias, the traces left behind by history, virtual place-marking, environmental stimuli, architecture, and sustainability.  

Throughout summer and fall 2011 artists and artist teams have come to CAC Woodside to create site-specific artworks tucked throughout the campus -spanning woodland, riverside and lawn environments. From The Bridge Club’s intricate walking path to Alex Young’s river-bound utopian structure, or Peter Edwards' interactive light-and-sound scape, artists will present new ways of interpreting the manner in which we inhabit space.

Opening reception Sunday, October 9, 5:30-8pm. A series of related talks, films and events happen throughout the length of the exhibition.

The Bridge Club

Timothy Buwalda

Peter Edwards

Brian Kane

Helena Slosar

Alex Young

Dwell was made possible, in part, by a grant from nysca logo