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Photos, Video: Break Dishes, Glasses, Even Emotions With gilf!
By
Scott Lynch
Published Feb 6, 2015
Modified Feb 6, 2015
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Scott Lynch / Gothamist
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By
Scott Lynch
Published Feb 6, 2015
Modified Feb 6, 2015
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Last night, more than 100 of us pissed-off New Yorkers gathered together in a DUMBO art gallery. We were angry about the NSA and drone warfare and the NY Police State. We were angry about impatient, reckless drivers killing pedestrians and cyclists. We were angry about the L train being crowded and our asshole ex-boyfriends and income inequality and corporate thievery and Citizens United and the freezing weather and ridiculously high rents and on and on and on.
But instead of talking about our feelings, or journaling, or organizing a march or something, we all just smashed scores of plates, glasses, platters, bowls... anything that would make a loud, satisfying crash.
(Scott Lynch / Gothamist)
It was invigorating. It was silly. It felt fucking great.
The event was called SHATTERING, and it was organized and hosted by the Brooklyn artist and activist Ann Lewis, otherwise known as gilf!. If the idea of breaking stuff sounds appealing, you should know that there's going to be a second night of SHATTERING on Saturday February 14th—the dreaded Valentine's Day. Lewis was kind enough to answer some questions about the work, in which she explained everything far more articulately than I could.
How does SHATTERING fit in with some of your other recent work, like the giant "Gentrification In Progress" yellow tape encircling 5Pointz right before its demolition, or the Trust Your Vision mural in DUMBO, or wearing an orange jumpsuit every day last October, for Mass Incarceration Awareness Month? Well the inspiration for SHATTERING actually started last year during Surplus Candy. I destroyed a whole kitchen in a building that was set for demo to make way for condos on 4th St between Ave C & D. I wanted to show how perceived progress can really have a detrimental impact on family life. It was my first step in the gentrification work I’ve been doing for the past year and ultimately very cathartic for me. After that experience, I wanted to find a way to give that release to others.
What's the significance of holding the second night of SHATTERING on Valentine's Day? Besides giving a destructive outlet to people who were screwed over by an ex? Love has a lot of baggage around it for most of us. What better way to spend Valentine’s Day than to destroy the baggage and start fresh? I like to think of a shattered plate as destruction of the old, heavy things that weigh us down. The Greeks used to shatter plates at weddings to signify a new beginning. I like to think this project holds that symbolism as well.
Where did you get all of the dishes? Might they have been put to better use in a soup kitchen or something, instead of smashing them to pieces for art? Everything for SHATTERING I sourced in the free section on Craigslist. I wanted to make sure that all of the pieces were saved from going to a landfill, so that we as a collective group aren’t destroying new objects that would otherwise be put to good use. These were all going to end up in the trash if I didn’t schlep them out of strangers’ homes. Also, the idea behind the project is to transform rage and frustration into something positive, even utilitarian for our communities. All the glass broken will get recycled down and used in a public works project I’m planning at the moment. Through my hands the ceramic pieces will evolve into works of art for a show I have this upcoming May at Joseph Gross Gallery. I like the transference of energy--from rage and release to art and positive change. I want to rethink how we function as a society, I think we have the creativity to do things better.
On my Flickr I get a consistent stream of traffic to the photos I've taken of your work over the years, but recently a lot of that seems to comes from people searching for "gilf" as in "Grandmothers I'd Love to Fuck". Can you tell us what your gilf! stands for/means, just so there's no confusion? Yes, the gilf acronym. Well, it was a word I made up as a child with a couple of incredible friends. It has always represented an energy where it was safe to be myself, and to be as wild and creative as I could be. It naturally became my moniker, but I’ve always had to have the “no I’m not a girl, or a grandmother you’d like to fuck” disclaimer. The people who follow me on twitter with those intentions get a constant stream of political rhetoric from me, they must be so confused. I love it.
A lot of your art, however different it might feel in terms of style or medium, seems to be in reaction to some immediate shit going down around us. Your gentrification pieces, for example, or your banner for the Millions March. Any thoughts on what's coming up next for you, either personally or in your work? Or is that dependent upon whatever the world slings at us next? AND what can we do to anticipate and stop the shit before it even happens? Well, I’m really loving this concept right now. Giving people an outlet to be angry I think is an awesome gift, and I’d like to keep on giving it. Anger is an emotion so many of us suppress. I think it can be a very powerful way to direct change, if done in the right atmosphere. I’m very excited to share the art I’ve been working on around this concept. They've got a lot of energy to them, a collective energy from all the hands and voices of people who participate. I think we have to get proactive in how we act and think. All we do is respond. That’s what I’ve been doing with my work for years, but I’m turning a corner with this project. It’s not about fighting back, it’s about evolving past the game. Moving in an uncharted, positive path that leaves behind all the ideas and systems that no longer serve us as a society.
SHATTERING will be held again on Saturday, February 14, from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m., at Joseph Gross Gallery, 111 Front Street, #224, DUMBO, Brooklyn.
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Scott Lynch
Photojournalist, food writer, preschool receptionist. Love NYC.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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