Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Getting To Know You: Artists Examine Authentic Connections in the Digital Age
601 Tully

601 Tully St.
Syracuse

Featuring work by Fanny Allié, American Bear, CampusNeighbor, and damali abrams.

In the digital age, people can virtually live their lives online. With the advent of various social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, it is easier than ever to connect. However, are these relationships genuine? Furthermore, does a social medium foster intimacy or aid in the superficiality of our society? For this exhibition, 601 Tully does not seek to resolve these questions but rather, bring them to light. The featured artists offer avenues for people to have authentic connections with one another through various interactive mediums with and without the assistance of the internet.

New York-based artist, Fanny Allié, invited Syracuse residents to submit photos, memories, and stories about their lives in an attempt to learn more about the community. With each memento, Allié will construct a site-specific installation that will give the audience a window into the individuals living in this area.

While Allié's installation exemplifies the direct interaction between herself and the participant, the collaborative team of American Bear created prompts and assignments for the public to engage with one another. As the assignments are completed, American Bear hopes to foster a more compassionate and community-minded city.

Like many college towns, there is and has always been an underlying fissure between Syracuse University students and the permanent residents. In recent years, Nancy Cantor, former Syracuse University Chancellor, has worked to mend that divide by creating the initiative, Scholarship in Action. CampusNeighbor is a bartering website that builds on that idea by linking these two groups together through skill-sharing, with the hopes that these exchanges will help to dismantle barriers that have been created through the years.

Although all of the above require participation in order to activate the piece, damali abrams, a performance-based artist, takes a different approach by reading from her diary. By exposing herself in this vulnerable manner, it elicits the viewer to relate to her through shared experiences.

Whether one is simply telling their story to Allié or participating in CampusNeighbor, the exhibition aims to get to know you.