The Gun and Doll Show
As the annual “Altered Barbie Show” hits town, we often find ourselves wondering if any of the work in this rambunctious exhibit will ever capture the nation’s critics, rising to the level of groundbreaking art. Then we step back and think: We’re idiots. This is a show about liberating the iconic doll from mainstream ideals, putting Ken in leather chaps, taking a blowtorch to the Dream House, and otherwise embracing, destroying, embalming, dismembering, or honoring Mattel’s greatest contribution to the upbringing of girls and more than a few boys. The show, which takes the title “Barbie and Ken’s Out-of-the-Bag Carnival,” even has a juror, Maggie Malloy, who takes her job very seriously –- “messy and unfinished work is a turn off,” she writes on the Web site, as well as “presentation, presentation, presentation.” This year’s show features more than 40 artists who work in all mediums: paint, video, performance, photography, and, of course, installation. We particularly like Melissa Chow’s photo of a disheveled Barbie inhaling fumes at a gas pump. Tonight’s artist’s reception includes music by Theloni on Wry, a Barbie poetry slam, the performance Homeless Barbie by Bad Unkl Sista, a lineup of films (including Tiffany Shlain’s The Tribe, Susan Stern’s Barbie Nation, and Michel Fraser’s How to Make an Altered Barbie), and more. It starts at 5 p.m.
Aug. 1-17, 2008
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