- Venue
- Tramway
- Location
- Scotland
There is a lot to take in within California wow!: giant MDF boxes disguised as mammoths, silky banner-collages standing in buckets of concrete and cheeky suns that appear to be blown up car air fresheners. Inverted brickwork mosaic, vertically poised beds and oblique photographic documents complete the picture. The immense space of Tramway 2 is crowded with Aldridge’s output in all its various manifestations.
The scope of work on display can be explained by the Aldridge’s commitment to collaboration. Many of the pieces were made together with the artist’s friends who, incidentally, are also artists. Aldridge has often worked collaboratively in the past and sees the process as a way of staying connected with people. Frequent collaboration between artists can foster a sense of community and pump energy into the scene.
The multiplicity of strong voices within the show begs the question of equal opportunities. Is it fair that out of a generation of makers working together in a city of rude artistic health, only one can be offered a solo exhibition at Tramway? In a way, Aldridge’s decision to incorporate so much of her friends’ work within her own show seems almost humble. The space is curated in a manner that seems thoroughly considered, with the work of Aldridge and her peers given almost an equal standing. The artist has made a series of careful and informed decisions regarding where the work of each of her collaborators might best fit within the show.
Aldridge’s curatorial involvement is an interesting example of circumventing the traditional division of labour in the gallery. This may be a small victory, considering that the credit for the show will likely go towards the artist whose name is on the poster. The complicated power relations result in a confusing and asymmetrical situation of a group show masked as a solo-exhibition. I find it impossible to judge whether the artist has done the right thing – and even less so whether there is any obligation on her to do so.
My interest in California Wow! is anchored in collaboration because I find it one of the most challenging and discursive ways of practicing art. During my time at art school I have become increasingly interested in collaboration both as a conductive way of working and as a subversive device against the marking system in which a work should have one author or, in case of a team effort, the role of each person clearly articulated.
For Aldridge, collaboration provides a way of seeing things from more than one perspective. The blurring of boundaries between perceiving objects and being perceived as one is an important line of argument within the exhibition. This concern is perhaps best embodied by the translucent pink room installation at the heart of the show. Created in collaboration with the architect Ian MacLeod, the structure presents the viewer with a choice to take it in from the outside or become fully immersed in it, perceiving the rest of the show through a thin veil of pink subjectivity.
The body is another area of negotiation within the show. In a series of photographs documenting object performances, the models bear the look of absolute detachment. The images refer to simple situations that Aldridge has repeatedly restaged throughout the years, using a different model each time. Through this process of removal the people in the photographs seem to be treading the line of objectification. A fabric print hanging in the back of the gallery takes the idea of alienation from the body to the landscape of Internet forums.
Once we get past the cornucopia of surprises, it becomes clear that the artist is genuinely invested in critical debates surrounding this full to the brim presentation. Although I find it difficult to say how I feel about this joyful extravaganza, I too care about the issues at stake. And I am glad that an artist of Aldridge’s energy and standing is taking them up in a new way that will hopefully prove inspiring to artists from my generation.
