Mar 27, 2015 - Apr 5, 2015
Kelly Bair/Central Standard Office of Design
The Cat That Ate the Canary
CNC milled, laminated, and dowel-assembled finish birch plywood
43.5 x 6 x 6 inches
In 1924, Max Ernst painted Two Children Are Threatened by a Nightingale. Anchoring the scene is an oversized birdhouse without evidence of an inhabitant. The Cat That Ate the Canary (TCTATC) speculates on the ability of an inanimate object to project figural qualities, shifting the birdhouse from context as in Ernst’s case, to character. TCTATC is both friend and foe. One side reveals catlike traits (the foe), such as perky ears and elegant legs, while the other suggests the safety of a nest through its soft, egg-like curves (the friend). TCTATC stands smugly, becoming a mischievous actor in the scene.
Kelly Bair/Central Standard Office of Design (CSoD) is a design and research studio in Chicago. Bair's work has been exhibited in New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, and New York City. Her work investigates both forms and features reminiscent of human and animal bodies (figural objects) and elusive atmospheric qualities (difficult to define yet utterly visceral in their effects). At the Central Standard Office of Design, the focus is on the production of architectural spaces and objects to provoke human interaction, elicit a sense of humor in its patrons, and pique curiosity.
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