VIDEO ART
Hewitt, Corin
U.S. (1971 - )
Wall
2010
Single-channel video (color, sound); Duration: 1:12:40
Gift from the William and Ruth True Foundation
FA 2014.302

Wall is the visual record of a performance that took place at Western Bridge, the beloved and now closed contemporary art space created by Bill and Ruth True in SoDo, an industrial district south of downtown Seattle. In the video, which was filmed in real time, Hewitt first removes a section of a wall, and then places it on a large light table to study it by photographing it and manipulating it. After this procedure, Hewitt bags and seals the materials and the photographs, returning them to their place of origin. He finishes the performance by repairing and sealing the wall. The performance was recorded from a video camera hanging above the workspace, recalling the filming angle of forensic and scientific examinations. Hewitt had previously worked as a plumber, and during the course of repair projects that required cutting into walls, he would often come across old newspapers, photographs, and other artifacts hidden or left behind by workers, home owners, or tenants. Intrigued by the nature of these random objects, the artist began to create personal time capsules, which included photographs and writings about his art, as well as his contact information. He would locate them in the sections where he felt his plumbing work was at its weakest, with the idea that someday someone would have to re-open the wall to fix his mistakes, unwittingly discovering real art objects instead of old artifacts. Wall is informed by this very personal artistic process, giving us a glimpse into the creation of a work of art that is now out of the public view.

Corin Hewitt was born in 1971 in Burlington, Vermont and currently lives and works in Richmond, Virginia. He received his MFA from the Milton-Avery Graduate School of the Arts at Bard College and his BA from Oberlin College. He has been the recipient of numerous awards and residencies, including the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship (2011) and the Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant (2010). His work is a part of several permanent collections including the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York and the Seattle Art Museum. -- Guidebook copy for The Ghost of Architecture, July 13 to September 29, 2013.