Albany, NY (September 5, 2006) - - - The Albany International Airport Gallery is pleased to present Michael Oatman’s Model Citizens: Giant Size, from August 11-October 22, 2006. Model Citizens is an exhibition and documentary video that unites artists, model makers and hobbyists in the vicinity of four urban centers: Cambridge, MA, New Haven, CT, Bellows Falls, VT and Albany/Schenectady/Troy, NY.
According to Troy artist and curator Michael Oatman, “When I conceived of the project four years ago, I was motivated by some of the issues confronting me as a maker of artworks that were thought to be obsessive, complex and at the very least, technically demanding. I had questions about why I was making this kind of work, and what prompted others (be they artists or hobbyists or professional model makers) to work such long hours on physically-demanding and patience-trying work. When I decided to make the documentary video I wasn’t planning on making a companion exhibit, but the work was so interesting, and in such a wide range of materials, that I just had to share my findings in a more immediate (and visceral) way with the public.”
Saugerties artist Roger Bisbing lines up two-inch tall putty-colored folding chairs on parquet or tile floors with tiny folding tables in arrangements that evoke PTA and town council meetings, bingo nights, or group therapy sessions. George Bossarte’s legendary Cambridge MA “Erector Set Parties” produced the blimp, Ferris wheel and other models featured here. The American Precision Museum, in Windsor VT, which boasts the “largest collection of historically significant tools in the nation,” contributed, among other wonderful models, 34 miniature mechanic’s and machinist’s tools fashioned to tiny, gleaming perfection. Jeff Brower’s highly detailed licensed figures for such films as Star Wars, Mars Attacks and Hellraiser can be seen here, along with his study models and master molds, revealing a glimpse into the professional modeler’s production process. Spanning large-scale contemporary art installations, like Danny Goodwin’s 12 mock surveillance devices suspended by clusters of helium balloons, to Erin Hennessy’s dozens of meticulously hand-cut snowflakes, Model Citizens is an exploration of the work and stories of those who spend part of their day as giants.
Model Citizens participants include: The American Precision Museum, Gregory Bartlett, Bill Brown and the Student Interns of the Eli Whitney Museum, Roger Bisbing, George Bossarte, Jeff Brower, Stephanie Cramer, Peter Edwards, Joe Fig, Jim Finn, Daniel Fokine, Dick Freeman, Jim Gallagher, Danny Goodwin, Andy Gray, Erin Hennessy, Kristina Killar, Henry Quinn, Ken Ragsdale, Randy Regier, The Rensselaer Model Railroad Society, Karin Stack and Mark Williams.
A public reception for Model Citizens will be held on Friday, September 15 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. in the Albany International Airport Gallery, third floor of the terminal. The video, Model Citizens, will be screened on Tuesday, September 26 from 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. in the Airport’s observation area, also located on the third floor of the terminal. Parking will be validated for both events.
For more information, please contact Sharon Bates, at 518.242.2243 or arts@albanyairport.com.
