The Carrion Cheer, A Faunistic Tragedy
May 18–July 7, 2018
The Marion and Wayland H. Cato Jr. Center for the Arts
161 Calhoun St
Charleston, SC 29424
United States
Hours: Monday–Saturday 11am–4pm,
Thursday 11am–7pm
T +1 843 953 4422
F +1 843 953 7890
halsey@cofc.edu
Artists talk: May 19, 2pm, free and open to the public
Family Day! for The Carrion Cheer: June 16, 10am–1pm, family-focused fun for all Halsey Institute Members
Curator-led tour of The Carrion Cheer: July 5, 6pm, all Halsey Institute Members can enjoy a tour with the exhibition curator
German artist duo create a makeshift transdimensional stopover camp for extinct animals to visit humanity and sing forgiveness
Germany-based artist duo Böhler & Orendt will create an immersive installation in the galleries of the Halsey Institute. Naming it a “makeshift transdimensional stopover camp,” the installation will consist of several tents through which viewers can walk. Each tent will feature an apparition of an extinct animal, such as a Steller’s Sea Cow, the Carolina Parakeet, and the Pinta Island Tortoise, which will appear as a projection on a screen of mist. The extinct animals will appear in chorus to sing a song of forgiveness to humans for causing their ultimate extinction. The tents also feature renderings and images representing the animals’ relationships with humans.
While whimsical and imaginative, the installation will comment on humans’ relationship with the world around us. As all of the animals featured in the exhibition have gone extinct between 1768 and the present, their demise can be blamed on in part by the Industrial Revolution and the destruction of habitats all over the planet. Böhler & Orendt’s project confronts the relentless appetite of humanity in seeking what they call moremoremore, a desire for exponential growth in all facets of our capitalistic society. Addressing increasingly politicized issues, this installation will provoke viewers to contemplate their own relationships with the communities, environments, and issues that comprise our global social fabric.
This will be the first solo exhibition of Böhler & Orendt’s work in the United States. The exhibition is curated by Bryan Granger, Manager of Exhibitions and Programs at the Halsey Institute. The installation’s chorus was composed by artist and musician Ingmar Saal. The Carrion Cheer is an official offering of Piccolo Spoleto 2018 and is supported in part by JB Architekten, Nuremburg, Germany. After its debut at the Halsey Institute, The Carrion Cheer will be exhibited at the Kunsthalle Göppingen, in Göppingen, Germany.
