The Intuitionists
Inspired by Colson Whitehead’s 1999 novel ‘The Intuitionist’ – a work of speculative fiction that explores the relationship between progress, technology, and difference, Drawing Center in 2014 curated an exhibition titled “Intuitionists”. The exhibition considered how the collection, the database, and the aggregate serve as complementary models for the organisation of information and objects in flux. It featured artworks by over sixty artist members of the Viewing Program. The Viewing Program was part of The Drawing Center initiative. It selects exhibitions, allowed the institution to present new trends, methods, and expansive approaches in the field of drawing. Selection shows were also often important platforms for introducing artists to a broader public.
Nyeema Morgan
Nyeema Morgan, Like It Is: Prelude, 2014. Dimensions and media variable. Courtesy of the artist.
TITLE: Nyeema Morgan
YEAR: 2014
TITLE: Kenny Cole, MDNJPN
MEDIUM: Gouache on paper
DIMENSIONS: 8 1/2 x 7 inches (21.6 x 17.8 cm).
YEAR: 2014
COURTESY: Aucocisco Gallery
Artists Heather Hart, Steffani Jemison, and Jina Valentine searched the Viewing Program registry for works that exist at the intersection of unusual keywords. These Viewing Program artists were then invited to submit an artwork that responded to a word or phrase from the novel. The artworks in ‘The Intuitionists’ exhibition was hung according to the sequence determined by Whitehead’s book. The Lab featured a collaboration by Hart, Jemison, and Valentine inspired by Whitehead’s book The Intuitionist, using letters of the alphabet to form an interpretive drawing.
TITLE: Cui Fei, Leaves
MEDIUM: Mixed media
DIMENSIONS: 8 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 1 1/2 inches (21.6 x 10.8 x 3.8 cm).
YEAR: 2014
COURTESY: The Artist
The Intuitionists was the final selections show of the program. The Viewing Program paved the way for Drawing Center’s Open Sessions. Open Sessions is a hybrid exhibition/residency program created by Lisa Sigal and Nova Benway, Open Sessions Curators. It provides unique opportunities for selected artists to find new approaches for contextualising and exhibiting their work.
TITLE: Patrick Earl Hammie, Platform
MEDIUM: Oil on mylar
DIMENSIONS: 84 x 11 inches (213.36 x 27.94 cm).
YEAR: 2014
COURTESY: The Artist
TITLE: Manfred Kirschner,Kunsttheorieuntersetzer – Lila-Mae
MEDIUM: Drawing / C-print
DIMENSIONS: 11 7/10 x 8 3/10 inches (29.69 x 21 cm).
YEAR: 2014
COURTESY: The Artist
TITLE: Jenny Perlin, Sequence (detail)
MEDIUM: Ink on vellum, set of 160 drawings
DIMENSIONS: Each 11 7/10 x 8 1/5 inches (29.7 x 21 cm).
YEAR: 2007
COURTESY: The Artist and Simon Preston, New York.
TITLE: Thomas Slaughter, Boy Scout Jack Knife
MEDIUM: Ink on paper
DIMENSIONS: 9 x 12 inches (22.86 x 30.48 cm).
YEAR: 2014
COURTESY: The Artist
About the Drawing Center
The Drawing Center is the only not-for-profit fine arts institution in the country to focus solely on the exhibition of drawings, both historical and contemporary. It was established in 1977 to provide opportunities for emerging and under-recognised artists; to demonstrate the significance and diversity of drawings throughout history, and to stimulate public dialogue on issues of art and culture.
