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the umasi collection
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chair
table
table
table
chair
table
chair
table
chair
chair
table
table
chair
bench
chair
chair
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bench
chair
chair
table
table
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"umasi chair"
(subtitled "mobius band")
baltic birch, mdf, telephone pole, steel
36" x 30" x 31"h
2008
designed by wells mason
price on request
these chairs address the issue of derelict buildings and the resultant grafitti that occurs in urban environments. vandalism, perhaps. lack of respect, maybe. but the derelict buildings are equally disrespectful — they scream of neglect and disuse. they’re quietly waiting, and they’re weary. graffiti, if anything, injects new life into their tired walls, and that goes straight into the bloodstream of our mass society — jolting us into an uneasy alertness. these chairs, in effect, capture the very essence of grafitti — it is visual adrenaline.
in 2009, these chairs were selected for the twenty-fourth exhibition of "new american talent" at the jones center for contemporary art in austin, texas. The juror for the exhibit, hamza walker, is widely recognized as one of the most important curators practicing in the field of contemporary art today.
about these chairs, walker said, "this piece is fucked up . . . but, it’s so clearly fucked up, and that’s what I like about it . . . it belongs at the Cooper-Hewitt . . ."
printed with permission
