ARLO MOUNTFORD

ARLO MOUNTFORD: THE FLUX OF THE MATTER
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Former Gertrude Studio Artist Arlo Mountford’s intelligent, self-reflexive animation works have become increasingly well-known, previously featuring in exhibitions at the Adelaide Biennial (2006); Heide Museum of Modern Art (2006); and Conical (2006). For his exhibition at Gertrude Contemporary entitled The Flux of the Matter, Mountford employed his trademark slapstick humour in a selection of animation works, a live computer work, and a kinetic sculpture. The Flux of the Matter included a large multi-channel video work featuring animated characters interacting directly with a computer generated representation of 200 Gertrude Street’s architectural spaces, littering it with offcuts from 20th Century art. Mountford also re-presented Chris Burden’s sculpture Samson, only Mountford’s version featured a motion-sensored car-jack that pushes a foam log into 200 Gertrude Street’s Main Gallery’s central column, progressively distorting the log’s shape. Taking inspiration from office email gags, Buster Keaton and the culture of ‘taking the piss’, Mountford’s work acts as a sly, yet confronting investigation into the role of humour in art and culture.

Supported by the Australia Council for the Arts.