In Time at MAD NY

The notion of time and industry have been linked since early Modernism. Our attachment to the reality of, or grounding in space continues to be challenged by economic and commercial constructs. Mounted at New York’s Museum of Arts and Design, the In Time exhibition spotlights three films –Two Films about Pressure by Andreas Bunte, Joy of Man’s Desiring by Denis Côté and The Unstable Object (II) by Daniel Eisenberg – all exposing current manufacturing processes in different formats. Juxtaposing this trifecta, is a highly critical installation by Barcelona-based duo Varvara & Ma. Speed of Markets employs a series of piano metronomes to visualise real time stock market volumes. With such a demonstration of conceptual form following information, this showcase addresses the very real interplay of interaction and detachment. Showing either ends of capitalist production, with one’s clear influence on the other and vice versa, MAD’s William and Mildred Lasdon Chief Curator Shannon R. Stratton makes a strong statement about the role of contemporary craft; the museum’s mandate. “In Time is an opportunity to not only witness the highly skilled process-based work that is still significant to industrial manufacturing,” she explains, “but also to consider the complex relationships between time, skilled handwork, labor, value, and of course, the craftsmanship of time-based media and its role in capturing and measuring durational activity.”

In Time runs till 22 May.

MAD (Museum of Arts and Design): 2 Columbus Circle, New York