David Rabinowitch's new work, Gravitational Vehicle VIII for Kepler and Euclid, we be included in a group exhibition at Fredericks & Freiser gallery, opening tomorrow.
Rabinowitch traces the series back to an early childhood interest in the work of the surrealist painter and sculptor Giorgio de Chirico and the way in which de Chirico, “combined ordinary historical conditions of the world with modern constructivism.” These two concerns — historical conditions and modern constructivism (a concept that the artist broadens to include the work of Cezanne) — inform much of Rabinowitch’s body of work.
The title of the series offers rich insight into some of the central ideas that inform the project. The name makes obvious reference to the natural phenomenon of gravity, although Rabinowitch is careful to clarify that he is neither a philosopher nor a theoretician. His interest is motivated by the intellectual and cultural value of these scientific and mathematical discoveries. Additionally, most works in the series are subtitled with the name of one or two contributors to modern scientific and mathematical discovery. The ascriptions serve as memorials to the human beings whose work contributed greatly to Western cultural development.
While discussing the Gravitational Vehicles series, the artist offered the opinion that “if a work doesn't contain within it an essential element of play, it is no good.” Perhaps one can then consider an encounter with a Gravitational Vehicle as an opportunity for playful exploration, activating creativity and the imagination. By presenting the viewer an opportunity in which a preexisting awareness of Western science is not requisite but simply an additional element for interpretation, Gravitational Vehicle VIII For Kepler & Euclid allows us to contemplate form and content while extrapolating an evolutionary thread's aesthetic and cultural legacy.
The Fredericks & Freiser exhibition will also include Beyer Projects collaborations with Anish Kapoor and Rachel Whiteread.