Jul 11 - Aug 30, 2008

Beyond the bricks and mortar, modern architecture in contemporary art is an oft used shorthand for the social movements of its time. “No Room” tracks this trajectory, considering the failure of modernist optimism, the postmodern skepticism that reacted against it, and modernist design’s recent renovation into lifestyle fodder, taking into account the turbulent oscillation between the content intended by the artist and the fluctuations brought about through context and time. Johnston Marklee’s exhibition transforms a gallery space into a varied and rich environment. Included in the assemblage are works of art that employ architecture as a central referent and a variety of iconic and vernacular furniture pieces. Encouraged to circulate amongst the artworks, the furniture, and other interior accoutrements installed in the gallery, visitors become part of a complex mise en scene. The combinatory nature of No Room meditates on art and space making, and debunks the contemporary desire for the holistic and glossy images of both.