David Altmejd Juices at the Andrea Rosen Gallery

David Altmejd’s The Flux and The Puddle, 2014, uses plexiglas, quartz, polystyrene, expandable foam, epoxy clay, epoxy gel, resin, synthetic hair, clothing, leather shoes, thread, mirror, plaster, acrylic paint, latex paint, metal wire, glass eyes, sequin, ceramic, synthetic flowers, synthetic branches, glue, gold, feathers, steel, coconuts, aqua resin, burlap, lighting system including fluorescent lights, Sharpie ink, and wood to create a Richard Serra-like gallery environment at the Andrea Rosen Gallery. The pictures do not do this installation justice. I had to walk around the perimeter a good four times–revisiting the fake ants, re-reading the messages on banana slices and getting a closer look at the ape arms. The entire time you are also grasping for some narrative or linkage between the parts. Is it about biology or it is some dystopian message the artist is trying to convey? Altmejd simply describes the work as a huge ecosystem where everything is connected. Regardless of what you make of the meaning, it’s both visually and physically captivating. Juices will be on display at Andrea Rosen until March 8, 2014.