Watching the Grass, I Mean Mold, Grow

Syracuse, New York – Friends and I checked out the new exhibit at The Warehouse Gallery this evening, the fourth and final in a series about the environment.
This one is a winner!
The multimedia show, “Networked Nature,” features seven installations that explore the meaning of nature in our hyper-connected, techno world. The exhibit is sparse, but thought provoking and distinct, particularly given the humdrum artwork that abounds in this city.
In one piece featuring three LCD screens mounted to a wall, we watch mold growing in slow motion. In a dark side room, we are hypnotized by a trio of beeping, clicking robots with flashing lights. In another piece, we hear sounds from a secretly recorded conversation between President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair; the sounds play through speakers embedded in vines that climb a column in the gallery.
My favorite was “Perfect View,” by C5, an art collective based in San Jose, Calif. This installation features three pieces. Each piece includes a panoramic photograph of a gorgeous location, along with a satellite image of the location and a computer rendering of its typography. It’s very National Geographic.
The story behind the installation really makes it interesting. The artists put a call out to GPS users, known as geo-cachers, asking for the latitude and longitudes of “sublime locations.” One of the C5 members grabbed a camera, hopped on a motorcycle and traveled 13,000 miles, through 33 states, to find and photograph the recommended spots.
In the local show, we see tranquil images from Oregon, Mississippi and The Adirondacks.
If you decide to see “Networked Nature,” be sure to read the placards that accompany each piece. They are essential to understanding, and being wowed by, this show.
Many might not know that The Warehouse Gallery opened less than a year ago. I haven’t loved every exhibit – those creepy pink squirrels from the “Faux Naturel” show still haunt me and the photographs of the guy in the brown bear costume in “Embracing Winter” were silly – but Astria Suparak, the gallery director, deserves hearty applause for presenting work that is stimulating and unusual. (JM)