ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Art maximalist Machine Dazzle is showing off the power of combining creative thinking and mundane objects in a new exhibit at the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
The installation, titled “Ouroboros,” fills up the 1,200-square-foot space of the Irving Stenn Jr. Family Gallery with objects found in local waterways. These have been turned into art and musical instruments, and used to create a dynamic soundscape.
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“The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol, depicting a snake eating its own tail,” said Dazzle in a release.
“Originating in ancient Egypt and the Greek magical tradition, it represents infinity, eternal life, and birth, death, and rebirth; the meanings resonant as I plan to construct the Ouroboros using found objects, much of this from local bodies of water. As part of the collaboration with UMMA, I look forward to the opportunity to experiment, to push my artistic practice in new directions.”
Over the next six months, parts of the installation will be moved and transformed into new iterations. It will be transformed on April 30 and then again on June 28, when 15 University of Michigan students will wear and animate the sculpture.
Dazzle’s artistry has previously been commissioned by New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Arts and Design, and the Harbourfront Centre’s Art and Intention exhibition in Toronto, Canada. The exhibition in UMMA is the artist’s first installation in the Midwest region, and will be done in collaboration with student artists.
He will be interviewed about the process of his exhibition during the June performance.
“Machine Dazzle’s work is a glittering kaleidoscope of joyful creativity, where every color, shape, and sparkle is testament to the limitless possibilities of the queer imagination,” said Jim Leija, Deputy Director for Public Experience and Learning at UMMA in a release.
“We are thrilled to bring Machine to U-M’s campus and to partner with him. The commission with Machine also continues UMMA’s commitment to supporting artists and fostering dialogues about contemporary social and political contexts. This also presents a new milestone in the ongoing evolution of Machine’s groundbreaking multidisciplinary practice.”