SPI Artists The Present Tense: Congratulations On Your Empire

Berwick Special Project Incubator Artists The Present Tense are premiering a new work at 55 Norfolk in Cambridge from 7pm to 10pm on November 1, 2008. Come and meet them and see what they do!

“Congratulations on your Empire”
Sandrine Schaefer & Philip Fryer
November 1-18, 2008
55 Norfolk Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
www.55Norfolk.com

“Congratulations on your Empire” is an evolving installation, activated by the art of Boston-based Actionists, Sandrine Schaefer and Philip Fryer. Meditating on ideas surrounding frozen time and accumulation, Schaefer and Fryer will create a series of performance art pieces to transform Cambridge’s new Gallery space, over the duration of the exhibition.

The work of Sandrine Schaefer confronts the infinite perceptions of speciesism by responding to the perversion involved in America’s meat and dairy industries. Her work explores cycles of the visible becoming invisible to discover ways to inspire forward movement. Working in various time-based media, Sandrine is inspired by concepts of accumulation, absurdity, site-sensitivity and actions of transport. Most currently, Sandrine is exploring universal language as a way to unlock the secrets of the universe.

Philip Fryer’s work deals with concepts of mortality, pop culture, the paranormal, and fragility. He typically uses simple objects and minimal actions. Zip ties, bubble wrap and white t-shirts are re-occurring and familiar objects that Fryer utilizes. Deliberate compositions with the conventional, create a myriad of personal, communal and historic meaning in Fryer’s work.

Schaefer & Fryer have shown their performance art, video, installation, and film in Germany, Belarus, The Philippines, Canada, and across the United States. Their shared belief in access through art has led them to create multiple collaborative works including the conception of The Present Tense, a Boston-based performance art initiative. Through The Present Tense, Schaefer and Fryer have organized multiple art festivals and artist exchanges that have given over 80 artists from all over the world an opportunity to share their work. Most currently, The Present Tense is in the process of building a comprehensive and evolving web-archive that will document contemporary time-based media.

Opening Action- November 1st, 7pm-10 pm
2nd Action- November 8th, 12pm-6pm
Closing Action- November 15th, 7pm-10pm

For more information on these two artists visit www.SandrineSchaefer.com & www.PhilipFryer.com