Mixed Messages

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Using only found objects—including even the wooden box that both contains and is part of this assemblage—Wilson creates an impressive variety of textures, spaces, and interpretive possibilities. By one reading, the lower, larger portion of the box might contain a landscape, with the central stem of a long string of firecrackers providing the sharp spine of a mountain range, and the tacks, brads, and bits of earrings in the box’s lid serving as dots in a starry sky. Through a different understanding, the firecracker’s serpentine curves might indeed remind of a coiling snake, held captive and given a chance to escape whenever the work is opened for display. Or perhaps the assemblage should be seen more straightforwardly as a fantastical collection of objects, squirreled away in a box to provide a sense of wonder and broader cultural suggestion—whose watch, whose rosary beads, whose firecrackers? Or, simpler still, maybe these things were brought together simply for their tactile appeal and physical diversity. There certainly are many different messages in Wilson’s mix.

Keywords

Mixed media
Fireworks
Assemblage
Assemblage
Wood