On Friday, June 26th, at 8:30PM, the Burchfield-Penney Art Center will play host to the third installment of the Monsters of Nature and Design series of art performances by Gary Nickard and Reinhard Reitzenstein. Monsters of Nature and Design III is being presented by the Big Orbit Gallery, and will be free and open to the public.
Normally, the performances feature other artists whom Nickard and Reitzenstein have invited to perform under the Monsters of Nature and Design moniker. This performance is no different, as Nickard and Reitznstein have invited Craig Smith (London, UK) and Colin Beatty (Boston, MA) to perform one of their special interactive shows for the Buffalo audience. Local punk group the Vores will be playing a musical composition to accompany the performance. Those who have seen the first and second installment of the series know that they were strongly influenced by the destructive art movement; both performances centered on smashing old pianos to help create a musical score. This act will be different though, as Craig Smith and Colin Beatty focus their shows around the science and aesthetics of human interaction, specifically as it relates to sports and athletics, and present a critique of sports in general.
The show will last twenty eight minutes, and will consist of Smith and Beatty making choreographed circuits around the Burchfield Penney with two chalk liners donated by Buff State. Burchfield Penney was chosen as the location because of its expansive lawn, which will provide the physical space required for this athletically oriented performance. As Smith and Beatty are making their circuits with the chalk liners this Nickard and Reitzenstein will be shouting directions at them through a pair of bullhorns, all backed by the Vores orchestral work. Smith and Beatty’s shows are known for their humor, and for their use of free form performance and improvisation. After the show the performers will pose for photos with the audience in a “tongue-in-cheek” take-off on sport’s autograph and media days.
This performance will coincide with the end of Craig Smith’s exhibition, Training Manual for Relational Art, which is currently on display at the Big Orbit Gallery through June 28th. The exhibition is based on photographs which both represent and virtualize the method of their own production. For more information on either Monsters of Nature and Design III or Training Manual for Relational Art, visit Big Orbit Gallery’s website.