23 May – 22 June, 2002
Exhibition
Opening Reception: Thursday May 23, 6 – 8 pm
The Spencer Brownstone Gallery is pleased to announce the solo exhibition of Norwegian artist Sven Påhlsson. This show will be the debut of Sven’s long awaited new digital animation project Sprawlville which consists of a large-scale projection installation using the latest video animation and 3D technology.
Sven Påhlsson’s new 10 minute 3D animation project Sprawlville or Life at the Highway Exit Ramp explores the suburban space. It analyzes the way the American Dream (to own your own house with a lawn a pool and 3 car garage) is fueling the growth of the suburban housing developments. Aerial maps of the spreading communities have an uncanny resemblance to charts of viscous diseases spreading in the human body. The exponential spreading of highway networks, malls, model houses and the SUV's has metamorphosed the optimistic visions from the 1950's of suburban life into a large, ever-growing dysfunctional suburban society, plagued with pollution, traffic and anxiety.
With his high resolution 3D modeling images of the suburban landscape Sven Påhlsson represents a virtual reality model world that we can experience and live in throughout the western world. The artist works together with renowned composer Erik Wollo to compose the original score for the soundtrack. Sven Påhlsson works at least one year on each project to research the subjects and the latest technologies available in order to create each piece.
Artist Bio
Sven Påhlsson has been working in 3D modeling and animation for the past ten years. He represented Norway in the 1997 Venice Biennale with his work Antebellum America. His work was recently shown at the Norwegian Museum of Contemporary Art in Oslo and at MoMA-PS1 in New York. This June Påhlsson will be presented at “Statements” in Art/33/Basel as well as exhibits at The New Museum and Yale University Art Gallery.