Xanadu* Gallery Opening Stuart Ross' Cognitive Dissonance Nov 8th- Dec 3rd, 2004 Xanadu* Written by Dennis Spafford Photographed by Lizzie Heard
'War'

“As a scientist, artist, and visionary commentator, he (Stuart Ross) has spent the greater part of his life interpreting contemporary social and cultural realities though his work.”

-Excerpt from Xanadu’s press release for Stuart Ross.

Stuart Ross’s recent debut at the Xanadu* Art Space introduced me to Ross' world of contradictions and how he attempts to understand these contradictions through working with wood, glass, metal, and light.

Stuart Ross

On the surface, many of his pieces were seemingly created for aesthetic purposes only (and that is actually the intention for some of the pieces according to Ross, with whom I spoke too at his opening). However, a closer look and a moment of thought asks the viewer to comtemplate both how certain artistic mediums communicate with one another and even more thought provokingly, to think about the role of women in Ross' world and society at large.

Every piece in Ross’s exhibition is created in mediums which contrast and compliment each other. A perfect example of this would be 19 Lights, which is basically 19 colored lights in a large wooden frame, each with its own niche, covered completely in burlap. The perfectly symmetrical piece is very simple yet it is a study on light and its variations. The burlap drastically subdues the colored light bulbs, which usually gleam bright colors. Ross manipulates the light with the burlap filter to create a soft glow of color. The rough, dark burlap is the anthesis of the bright, airy, colored lights; yet the synthesis of these two different mediums creates an effect which is unique and lovely.

The joining of opposites is again tackled in the piece titled, War. Pieces of metal are riveted down and create what looks like the inside of a boat. This riveted metal scene brings to mind industrial images, cold and inhuman. Yet the highly polished surfaces and the strategically positioned gallery lights elevate your interpretation of this piece and draw you away from original darker thoughts. Once again light is used by Ross to change the dialogue the piece has with the viewer.

Ross’s view of women was not a topic I had the opportunity to discuss with him at the exhibition, but I feel as if I was able to glean an idea of what he does think of women via his two pieces, Mujer and American Prison. Right off let me say that these two pieces are very different in composition - Mujer is a freestanding sculpture of wood and metal, while American Prison is a collage, housed in a shadow box and hung on a wall.

	'Mujer'
Rachael Roberts & Dennis Spafford

Mujer, which is Spanish for woman, is a rickety cross-like structure, which has a pulley system of sorts. One is invited to pull the chain of the pulley and when you do so, a bell rings. Rusty pieces of metal adorn the sculpture at its column and along its cross, as if they were echoing the jewelry a woman might wear. It seems to me that this sculpture instability, its tactile nature, and its crude adornments convey a negative image of a woman. I am left with the image of a vulgar plaything, only able to sing if someone pulls its chain - like a slave. If this is Ross’s own personal view or his interpretation of what American society views of women, I am unable to tell. But non the less, this is a powerful piece be it positive or negative.

	'American Prison'
Rachael Roberts & Dennis Spafford

American Prison, on the other hand, seems to be Ross’ interpretation of society's view of women. In Prison's shadow box frame, there is a collage of two models posing and looking out at us seductively. Before them in the shadow box, there is a mini alter of sorts - littered with glass balls and spheres. There is also a small tree branch, which holds a light, and this light is covered with a barbwire guard. To me this light means to symbolize truth and beauty, which is kept at bay, untouchable, because of the barbwire. The tree branch holding up the light is meant to remind us of our connectedness to earth, and the glass balls are metaphors for the spheres we create for ourselves. I think this piece is trying to say to the viewer that now matter how appealing commercial beauty appears, it is in reality flat, textureless, and false and that we need to reconnect to what is true and pure and real in the world.

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