PUNTA GALLERY shows the work of two artists, Brad Downey (US),
and Ivan Moudov (Bulgaria), both confronting the symbols of power
institutions intertwined in our everyday milieu. Their critical
approaches present ironic, humorous interpretations of how we perceive
governmental structures, emphasizing on the brittle balance
between those in power and those subjected to it. The selected
editions consist of objects, video, and photographic documentation of
several performances. In “Nightstick” Downey transforms the
police baton into a flaccid version of itself. In “Pretending to
Be in Control” acrobats wearing full combat gear of the French
security forces perform various acrobatic moves transforming into
agents of playfulness and chaos. The line of chaos is also
followed by Moudov in “14:13 Minutes Priority, 2005” video
documentation of a performance that took place in Weimar, Germany where he
organised seven cars to drive in circles at a key city
roundabout, thus managing to block the traffic for all who tried to enter
it. In addition, both
artists examine the symbolic and ideological manifestations of
power - in the face of monuments. Downey’s edition “Melania”
is a bronze miniature of a sculpture, originally created by a
Slovenian artist with a chainsaw from a tree trunk. This was the world’s
first public sculpture of the then American First Lady and
reflects both the anti-immigrant policies of the 45th U.S. President and
the paradox of his own wife’s immigrant background. Moudov’s
“Empeche-pipi” adapts already existing facilities for public
restrictions - structures on the corners of buildings to prevent
urination. Rendering it inefficient, the artist creates the ultimate object
of prohibition, a monument of such.