Lot 38: NICK DARMSTAEDTER (B. 1988) The Other, 2012

NICK DARMSTAEDTER (B. 1988)
The Other, 2012

signed with the artist's initials 'ND' (on the reverse)
oxidized copper on canvas on panel

108 x 36in.
274.3 x 91.4cm
FOOTNOTES
Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner.

Exhibited
New York, Zach Feuer Gallery, This is THIS, 17 January-16 February 2013.


In a nod to the aesthetic techniques of American Pop, Minimalism, and the earlier Duchampian readymades, the work of Nick Darmstaedter is multidisciplinary and rapturous in its deconstruction of formal art practices and transformation of found objects. A prominent member of The Still House Group, a collective organization of young artists based in Brooklyn, Darmstaedter challenges preconceived notions of Contemporary Art in both his range of artistry and manipulation of material.

The artist's copper penny series is a subversive yet distinguished play on color, composition, and the way in which mass culture informs personal identity. One after another, each penny is laid down on canvas, allowing a chemical reaction to transpire, a process highly reminiscent of Robert Rauschenberg's solvent transfers. The copper penny, once oxidized, produces a resplendent, mesmerizing turquoise, the grid-like structure of the pennies disappearing and morphing into one cohesive body as the viewer moves further from the canvas. The Other, 2012, calls into question the physical properties and original form of found objects, and further, the visual consciousness of the viewer and subsequent interpretation of manual versus mechanical.

Though Darmstaedter is certainly not the first artist to explore the concept of re-appropriation through reduction of found objects, he does so deftly and unapologetically, his work evoking the two core constructs of Minimalism: serial repetition in form or subject matter and elimination of the discernible artist's hand. The Other, however, refuses simplistic categorization as Minimalist or post-Minimalist art, instead incorporating individual elements to emerge as an amalgamation of method and style and serves as an inventive and compelling exploration of medium and process where the imperfections of material are not only exposed, they are celebrated.