Opening Reception January 10 from 6-9pm
Gallery Project presents DRONES, a multimedia exhibit in which over 40 local, regional, national, and international artists explore the phenomenon of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in American society, with its implications for modern warfare, surveillance and everyday life. The exhibit includes Drone Shadows by U.K. artist, James Bridle, recently at the Corcoran in Washington, D.C., drone proof clothing by Adam Harvey, highlighted in a July issue of The New York Times.
This is Gallery Project’s first dual-site exhibit after completing 70 exhibits in eight years at its South Fourth Avenue location in downtown Ann Arbor. The exhibit was in Detroit from October 11-November 24, 2013, at the Cornerstone Pointe in Detroit’s historical Eastern Market. Soon, it will be in downtown Ann Arbor, January 3-February 16, 2014, at the Ann Arbor Art Center.
CLICK HERE FOR CURRENT MAGAZINE’S DRONES COVERAGE
CLICK HERE FOR MLIVE’s DRONES COVERAGE
The purpose of sequencing the exhibition sites is to extend the time frame for Gallery Project’s conversation about drones.
Drones are the quintessential object of the 21st century. They are revolutionizing global warfare and domestic and foreign surveillance, galvanizing the creative impulse, and challenging democratic principles and personal values around the globe. They are changing the way we work, play, battle, and live in the 21st century.
By definition, a drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle. Its flight is controlled either by autonomous on- board computers or by remote control. The burgeoning variety of drone shapes, sizes, configurations and capabilities expresses the limitless imagination and advancing skills of designers and users. Historically, UAV’s were simple remotely piloted aircraft. Autonomous control was developed, redesigned, and enhanced with many more uses and ever-increasing sophistication. Currently, Micro Air Vehicles (MAVs), including insect and bird-size drones, can fly, perch, hover, and crawl as part of their surveillance capabilities. Sizes range from quarter-sized hummingbird surveillance drones to 68 feet predator drones. Drone swarms and armies, which might seem straight out of the Terminator movies, are being designed and developed.
Drones are being developed for a wide range of scientific and commercial applications including monitoring oil pipelines and water levels, mapping archeological digs and pollution, fighting fires, filming action sports, tracking migrating wildlife and poachers, searching for the missing and fugitives, air dropping supplies, and surveying devastation from natural disasters. Drones are preferred for missions that are too “dull, dirty, or dangerous” for manned aircraft.
Advances in fields such as remote sensing, robotics, miniaturization, global positioning, fuel cells, and avionics have accelerated the growth in applications of drone technologies. Much of this growth is experimental, secretive and unregulated. Current and future implications for society are largely unexplored and unknown.
In this exhibit, artists will explore drones from various perspectives, both real and imagined, including their current and future designs, capabilities, applications, and possible societal impacts and consequences. They will also examine the context and environment of drone development including the developers, users, and in some cases, victims, of these technologies.
Participating artists include Hiba Ali and Asher J. Kohn, Heather Accurso, Carolyn Reed Barritt, Matthew Battles, Noor Behram, James Bridle, Sarah Buckius, Lea Bult, Seder Burns, Jeff Cancelosi, Chris Crowder, Rocco DePietro, Carl Diehl, ESSAM,Matt Gordon, Adam Harvey, Mark Herald, Dan Hernandez, James Knight, Kyle Kramer, Arnold Patrick Martin, Robert Mirek, Frank Pahl, Tim Péwé, Pitch Interactive, Gloria Pritschet, Boris Rasin, Colin Raymond, Nathan Rice, Adam Rothstein, Gregg Segal, Kevin Serota, Adam Shiverdecker, David Shook, Joshua Smith, Rob Todd, Peter Williams, Viktor Witkowski, Robin Wilt, and Jay Zehngebot.
“Drones” is curated by Rocco DePietro and Gloria Pritschet, founders and directors of Gallery Project.
Founded in April 2005, Gallery Project mission is to provide a venue for contemporary art that is culturally aware, individualistic, courageous, and thought provoking. In its new phase, Gallery Project will present 1-2 themed exhibits annually in Ann Arbor, Detroit and other regional locations. Gallery Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. For more information, contact us at 734-332-1570, or by e-mail atgalleryproject@gmail.com, or through our website at www.thegalleryproject.com.