State Street Gallery Project: Curtis Whaley and Gregg Perkins

Overview

Generations of Americans have been captivated by the Etch A Sketch. Since its release in 1959, the toy has spawned competitions, clubs and websites. For the State Street Gallery, Madison artists Curtis Whaley and Gregg Perkins will present a newly commissioned work that incorporates this icon of mid twentieth-century design.

Through the use of an Etch A Sketch caught on digital video, a drawing will be projected in real time onto the Museum’s large storefront window from inside. As it progresses, the linear, monochromatic drawing evokes both structural film and conceptual art practice. As viewers experiences will vary according to the amount of daylight, the projection will continue into the evening after the Museum’s regular hours.

As with previous State Street window installations, this latest work makes unique use of its site. “The video projection collapses high tech and low tech, new media and traditional media, modernism and illusionism, the architectural space of a window and the flat plane of a drawing support, the private gallery and the public street,” observes curator of exhibitions Sara Krajewski.

Whaley’s drawings were featured in the 1999 and 2002 Wisconsin Triennial. Perkins is a painter and sound artist who creates environmental installations. The two share a background in music as well as the visual arts and have been collaborating for several months.

Exhibition Support

Funding has been provided by The Art League of the Madison Art Center; the Madison Art Center’s 2002–2003 Sustaining Benefactors; and a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin.