Design Office with Kim Gordon – since 1980
September 7–October 19, 2013 320 West 13th Street
Press Release
White Columns is pleased to announce ‘Design Office with Kim Gordon – Since 1980’, the first survey exhibition of Kim Gordon’s ongoing art practice.
Kim Gordon studied at the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles in the late 1970s and has continued to work as an artist since then. Her first solo exhibition, presented under the name ‘Design Office’ took place at White Columns in 1981. The current exhibition includes photographs, writings, videos, paintings, sculptures and archival materials relating to Gordon’s activities between 1980 and 2013.
In a 1980 statement about ‘Design Office’ Gordon wrote: “… the general area of interest for myself is experimental, using art to deconstruct design, … and design to deconstruct art as it exists within varying life styles …” For the past thirty years Gordon has worked consistently across disciplines and across distinct cultural fields: art, design, writing (ZG, Real Life, Artforum etc.), fashion (X-Girl), music (inc. Sonic Youth, Free Kitten, Body/Head), and film/video (both an actress and director.) About Gordon’s mercurial practice, Ben Ratliff writing in The New York Times observed:
“Being able to see and hear Ms. Gordon more clearly now, in primary roles, helps suggests a pattern. Her path has seemed continually accidental or indirect, one side-door entrance after another. As an adjunct of making art, she became a writer. As an adjunct of being a writer, she joined a band. Her work in a band, and the discipline of developing a public visual persona, may have led her toward fashion. And so on.”
On view at White Columns are key video works, including ‘Making The Nature Scene’ (1983) shot in New York’s Danceteria nightclub, and the ‘X-Girl Movie’ (1995) – a promotional film for Gordon’s and Daisy Von Furth’s clothing line, shot by Phil Morrison in the manner of the French New Wave cinema. Also on view are documentary videos of Gordon and Jutta Koether’s collaborative performances and installations, including images from the now legendary month-long series of events they organized as ‘The Club In The Shadow’ at Kenny Schachter’s downtown space in 2003.
Gordon’s paintings include the ongoing ‘Noise Painting’ series, depicting the names of experimental and noise groups (e.g. ‘Weak Sisters’, ‘Pussy Galore’ and – on the floor, crumpled into a ball – ‘Sonic Youth’); a series of paintings depicting the names of contemporary galleries and gallery owners (including ‘Larry Gagosian’, ‘Barbara Gladstone’, and ‘White Columns’); works from the untitled ‘From The Boyfriend’ series – Rorschach-like images painted on used denim skirts, and the most recent series of ‘Twitter Paintings’ sourced from the Twitter streams of ‘GIRLS’ producer Jenni Konner, critic Jerry Saltz, and artist Richard Prince among others.
A new limited-edition vinyl solo recording ‘Walks With Men’ by Kim Gordon will accompany the exhibition, released on ‘The Sound of White Columns’ label. A publication anthologizing Gordon’s activities as an artist will follow in the fall.
Two newly commissioned Design Office t-shirts will also be available from the gallery.
Kim Gordon’s art has been shown internationally including recent solo exhibitions at KS Art, New York and Reena Spaulings Fine Art, New York, among others. Her collected writings – which originally appeared in Artforum, ZG and Real Life magazines – are forthcoming from the Sternberg Press. A widely recorded musician Kim Gordon is a founding member of Sonic Youth and performs as Body/Head (with Bill Nace.) In September 2013 Body/Head will release their debut album on Matador, and play select dates in both the United States and Europe.
In November 2013, ISSUE Project Room in Brooklyn concludes its ten-year anniversary festival with a capstone, two-night benefit concert series honoring Kim Gordon. Over two evenings, Gordon will be joined in performances by collaborators Ikue Mori, Bill Nace, Jutta Koether, with more to be announced. For more information on this event, visit: www.issueprojectroom.org
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For further information about White Columns’ exhibitions please contact: info@whitecolumns.org
Related Press
Flavorwire - September 10, 2013
The Guardian - September 9, 2013
W Magazine - September 9, 2013
We Heart - September 9, 2013
NME - September 8, 2013
The New York Times - September 6, 2013
Style.com - September 6, 2013
The Huffington Post - September 3, 2013
Cura - September 2, 2013
Time Out NY - August 27, 2013
Complex - August 6, 2013
Paper Magazine - August 2, 2013
Kim Gordon, White Columns, 2011, acrylic on canvas (The words “White Columns” written in smeared red paint on a white canvas).
Kim Gordon, Design Office (client: Dan Graham), 1980, watercolor on typewriter paper, 17 × 14.5 in. (A framed frontal painting of a person from the chest up looking over their shoulder.)
Kim Gordon, Pussy Galore, 2007, black gesso and interference paint on canvas, 55 × 39.5 in. (The words “Pussy Galore” written in black paint on a white canvas.)
Kim Gordon, Gallery Portrait: Larry Gagosian, 2011, black gesso and interference paint on canvas, 24 × 22 in. (“Larry Gagosian” written in black paint on a white canvas.)
Kim Gordon, Band Name Sculpture: Sonic Youth, 2013, black gesso and aqua resin on canvas, 17 × 44 × 30 in. (An image of a mass of crumpled canvas with unintelligible black markings on it against a gray background.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013 (A wooden plank sitting at an angle to the left of the frame in a gallery space. It has news articles, images and writing that reads “THE CLUB IN THE SHADOW.” The adjacent walls behind the wood and to its right display a projected close-up image of people’s faces.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (An image taken from the outdoors of an indoor window display. The outline of the side profile of a yellow chair is adhered to the window. Below the chair are the letters “D.” and “O.” On the far wall behind the image of the chair is text reading “DESIGN OFFICE WITH KIM GORDON – SINCE 1980”.)
Kim Gordon, Twitter Painting, 2012/2013, acrylic and powdered copper on paper, 24 × 19.5 in. (A piece of notebook paper framed in a white frame. Writing on the paper reads “Pretend Jeff Koons is a real artist @Jerry Saltz.”)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (A glass display containing printed matter inside a gallery space. Two paintings and a photograph are displayed on the adjacent walls behind and to the left of the display.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (A glass display containing printed matter inside a gallery space. A single painting hangs above the display on the wall.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (The interior of a gallery space. A photograph hangs on a wall to the left, while two paintings reading “PUSSY GALORE” and “WEAK SISTERS” hang on the wall perpendicular to the first. A crumpled mass of canvas with unintelligible black markings is in the center of the floor.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (A mobile soundproof room with canvases of painted sentences and phrases in a gallery space. A teal canvas of foam hangs on the wall to the back right of the soundproof room.)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (A glass display containing various printed matter sits on the left of the frame inside a gallery. To its right is a stack of a portable DVD player, two cubed canvases and a folded painting on top of a dolly. A row of five painted denim skirts hangs on the gallery wall behind the dolly stack. On the wall adjacent and behind the glass display hangs six paintings.)
Kim Gordon, Twitter Painting, 2012/2013, acrylic and powdered copper on paper, 24 × 19.5 in. (A piece of notebook paper framed in a white frame. Writing on the paper reads “‘All animals have the same parts’ Pamela Anderson/retweeted by Richard Prince.”)
Kim Gordon, Untitled, 2010, tree branch, acrylic, glitter and stockings, 116 × 20 × 12 in. (A long tree branch with stockings wrapped around the top sits in the left corner of adjacent walls in a gallery space and extends beyond the top of the frame. The bottom of a staircase is pictured to the right and above the stairs is text that reads “DESIGN OFFICE WITH KIM GORDON – SINCE 1980.”)
Kim Gordon, Making the Nature Scene: Rock Clubs in New York, c. 1983, video, 11 minutes 2 seconds. (An image of a sony television monitor. The screen reads “GAIN INSTITUTIONAL POWER THROUGH WHAT THEY PRODUCE OR SPONSOR. IN THE END THE “KITCHEN” OR ”FASHION MODA” BECOME BETTER KNOWN THAN ANYTHING THEY SHOW. IN THE SAME WAY CLUBS GAIN.”)
Kim Gordon, installation view, 2013. (A television monitor sitting on top of a block that has text on paper plastered on each side.)
Kim Gordon, Furniture Arranged for the Home Office, 1981, B&W photograph, 32 × 40 in. (A black and white photograph of a person inside of a living space. Furniture and a fireplace are pictured in the background.)
Kim Gordon, Wreath Painting: Northampton, MA, 2013, spray paint on canvas, 58 × 44 in. (A painting of an orange, organic shape with a white wreath inside of it against a white canvas.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from Dead Already at Reena Spaulings), 2007, in collaboration with Jutta Koether, tree branch, acrylic, glitter, 92 × 15 × 15 in. (A long tree branch in the corner of two adjacent walls in a gallery space.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from the Boyfriend series), 2012, black gesso and matte medium on denim skirt, 19 × 13.5 in. (A denim skirt laying flat and rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Black paint roughly in the shape of a diamond is on the front of the skirt.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from the Boyfriend series), 2012, black gesso and matte medium on denim skirt, 18 × 12 in. (A denim skirt laying flat and rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Black paint covers the skirt almost entirely.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from the Boyfriend series), 2012, black gesso and matte medium on denim skirt, 17 × 12 in. (A denim skirt laying flat and rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Black paint covers the skirt almost entirely.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from the Boyfriend series), 2012, black gesso and matte medium on denim skirt, 18 × 12 in. (A denim skirt laying flat and rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Black paint covers the skirt almost entirely.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from the Boyfriend series), 2012, black gesso, acrylic and matte medium on denim skirt, 17 × 12 in. (A denim skirt laying flat and rotated 90 degrees clockwise. Black and red paint cover the skirt almost entirely.)
Kim Gordon, Twitter Painting, 2012/2013, acrylic and powdered copper on paper, 24 × 19.5 in. (A piece of notebook paper framed in a white frame. Writing on the paper reads “My tweet wasn’t meant to be mean I just wasn’t paying attention -Jenni Konner.”
Matthew Higgs, T-shirt sketch for “Design Office with Kim Gordon – since 1980,” 2013. (A sketch of the front and back of a t-shirt design. The image labeled “FRONT” has “WHITE COLUMNS” written on it and the image labeled “BACK” has a small drawing of a chair.)
Kim Gordon, Noise Band Painting: Weak Sisters, 2008, black gesso and interference paint on canvas, 55 × 39.5 in. (The words “WEAK SISTERS” written in black paint on a white canvas.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from Desiring Machines), 2004, faux watercolor, 34 × 14.5 in. (A blurry image of five people indoors standing in a row occupying the width of the frame.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled, 2013, acoustic foam, 72 × 48 in. (A teal canvas of pleated foam.)
Kim Gordon, vitrine with various archive materials c. 1980s, 2013. (A glass display case containing various printed matter, some open and some closed.)
Kim Gordon, Lottie, 2013, black stockings, dimensions variable. (A pair of stockings draping over a metal frame and resting on the floor.)
Kim Gordon, Noise Nomads (from Rock, Paper, Scissors), 2009, in collaboration with Jutta Koether, acrylic, black gesso, glitter on cubed canvas, portable DVD player, video, dolly, 48 × 30 × 20 in. (A stack of a portable DVD player, two cubed canvases and a folded painting on top of a dolly.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled, 2009, folded painting (inside Noise Nomads), dimensions variable. (The interior of a cubed canvas which holds a folded painting.)
Kim Gordon, Julie Cafritz (from Dead Already at Reena Spaulings), 2007, mobile soundproof room, black gesso on canvas, wooden stool, portable DVD player, video, 68 × 72 × 52 in. (A mobile soundproof room with canvases of painted sentences and phrases.)
Kim Gordon, Guitar Performance text, c. 2009, ink on paper, two parts: 36 × 24 in. each. (Text on paper.)
Kim Gordon, Guitar Performance text, c. 2009, ink on paper, two parts: 36 × 24 in. each. (Text on paper.)
Kim Gordon, Club in the Shadow, 2003, in collaboration with Jutta Koether, mixed media sculpture, 36 × 48 × 6 in. (A wooden plank that has news articles and images adhered to it. The newspaper headline reads “I’ll Be at My Club.” There is also text that reads “THE CLUB IN THE SHADOW.”)
Kim Gordon, documentation of Club in the Shadow, 2003, in collaboration with Jutta Koether, slide show projection, photo by Stefano Giovannini. (A projected image on the wall of a gallery. The image is of a person from behind wearing a jacket that says “CARPENTERS.”)
Kim Gordon, Documentation of Two Grahams (from Dead Already at Reena Spaulings), 2007, in collaboration with Jutta Koether, video. (An image of a person playing guitar from behind. There’s an audience of at least six people in front of the guitarist.)
Kim Gordon, Stairway, 2003, shot and edited by Dave Markey, video. (An image of a TV monitor in a gallery. The frame on the monitor is an image of residential architecture. The monitor is wired to a video player on the floor.)
Kim Gordon, L. A. house, 2004, faux watercolor on foam board, 18 × 24 in. (An image of a home with a stairway, door and window. Trees and bushes are scattered throughout the frame.)
Kim Gordon, Charlie, 2004, spray paint on cellophane, 74 × 30 in. (A sheet of holographic material with an abstract figure spray painted on it.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled (from Dead Already at Reena Spaulings), 2007, tree branch, acrylic and glitter, 75 × 12 × 10 in. (A blue tree branch in the corner of two adjacent walls in a gallery.)
Kim Gordon, Untitled, 2010, acrylic and polyurethane on wood, two pieces: 48 × 24 in. each. (Two planks of black, brown and orange wood.)
Kim Gordon, X-Girl Tennis, 1994, ink on paper, 36 × 24 in. (A graphic of two tennis rackets crossing each other to form an “X.” Stylized text above and below the rackets reads “x-girl tennis.”)
Kim Gordon, X-Girl movie, 1995, directed by Phil Morrison, video projection, 16 minutes 8 seconds. (A still from a video of a person spray painting words onto a white wall between two shelves.)
Kim Gordon, X-Girl t-shirt, 1994, cotton t-shirt, extra small. (A t-shirt with a graphic of two tennis rackets crossing each other to form an “X.” Stylized text above and below the rackets reads “x-girl tennis.”)
Kim Gordon, Car Landscape, 2013, gold paint on paper, 11 × 17 in. (A magazine spread of a car advertisement. The windshield and back window are painted gold.)
Kim Gordon, Car Landscape, 2013, gold paint on paper, 11 × 17 in. (A magazine spread of a car advertisement. The windshield and back window are painted gold.)
