David Winton Bell Gallery. The show opens on the 29th, and runs through the first of November. I've been a fan of Hassenfeld for quite a while, and am looking forward to having the opportunity to experience one of her installations in person. Hassenfeld creates baroquean installations comprised of clear vellum, paper, and other non-precious materials. She references historical jewelry, decorations, metalwork, and chains. She shifts the scale of the ornaments, the viewer becomes subordinate to the sculptures, most of which are suspended from the ceiling like strands of gems.
It is this scale shift that I especially respond to. Gaston Bachelard dedicates a chapter to the concept of the miniature in his book the Poetics of Space. He states that "the minuscule opens up an entire world. The details of a thing can be the sign of a new world which, like all worlds, contains the attributes of greatness. Miniature is one of the refuges of greatness."
I anticipate that Kirsten Hassenfeld's installation will be just that: a unique and surreal world spawned from the miniature. I'll let you know...
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