Gemini G.E.L. at Joni Moisant Weyl is pleased to present Gemini’s third collaboration with Los Angeles based artist Analia Saban featuring six new etchings. In this latest series, the artist delves into more conceptual ideas, considering the steps involved in creating and presenting an edition. The resulting works call attention to these norms in a thoughtful and refreshing way.
Flowchart (Mountains) and Flowchart (Leaves) each feature a didactic chart that playfully provides instructions in the margins about how to make the very print you are viewing. Like a very simple computer program, the instructions direct the process based on questions with yes or no answers. Further, these pieces serve to “break the fourth wall,” that imaginary line separating the artist from the audience. Are the instructions meant for Gemini’s Master Printer Case Hudson and his etching team, or for the viewer?
In This One, Saban presents three etchings that illustrate different sized stacks of paper. One pile presents a full edition of 25 prints, another shows an edition of 50, and another illustrates 100 sheets of an edition. At once witty and satirical, Saban uses a red arrow to indicate exactly which piece of paper in the drawing corresponds to the signed-and-numbered impression of the print.
Lastly, an abstract black and white work titled Pong takes its title and composition from an early Atari computer game created in 1972. A simple game of visual economy, the lines and dot of the “ball” that bounces across the screen resemble early Minimalist paintings that feature shapes, repitition, and a neutral background. However, unlike Minimalist painting that rejects narrative, the title invokes a video game, one particular game that is rich in history and culture of the early computer age.
