3020 Laguna Street in Exitum
Nine artists transform a 150 year old house into a home of site-specific installations
The recently opened Highlight Gallery has added a new project space in San Francisco’s Cow Hollow District, turning a 19th-century home into a venue for sight-specific installations. 3020 Laguna Street in Exitum features a variety of works by nine artists, made entirely from materials found on the condemned premises. From a deconstructed facade to the equally deconstructing performance piece of Jeremiah Barber, the level of intelligent art reaches all corners of the humble dwelling.
Home to many generations in its 150 years of existence, 3020 Laguna Street has been marked for demolition, making it the ideal location for installations like Chris Fraser’s “Outline.” By stripping the walls to their bones, he removes the barrier between outside and in, eliminating a defining factor in what makes a shelter a home.
Also significantly manipulating the structure is Andy Vogt’s “Drawn Out”. By dropping the floorboards and restructuring the joints below, Vogt has rebuilt the flooring exactly as it was to connect two openings. This predetermined path leads to the structure’s exit, in the same way the building’s exit has been predetermined by a date of demolition.
Following the strict rule of using only materials taken from the structure, Yulia Pinkusevich’s “Data Mass Projection” full room installation is made entirely of telephone wires stripped from the house’s walls. The wave-like structure acts like a 3D infographic referencing the constant supply of energy surrounding us at any given moment.
While every area of the house tells a story, Jeremiah Barber’s basement “Dreamburn” performance may draw the most attention. By contrasting a body replica from found paper Barber creates a mirrored image, referencing an out-of-body experience. As the paper body floats above the human one the dream-like state is unexpectedly set ablaze. With Barber just under water in the flooded basement the paper structure is left to burn to nothing, jolting the observer from the dream in a matter of moments.
3020 Laguna Street in Exitum has two more scheduled visiting times left in its short run prior to demolition on 18 and 25 February. Both days the space will be open from 2-7pm. For more information check Highlight Gallery online and for more images of the installations check the gallery below.
Images courtesy of Highlight Gallery
