Dina Rubiolo FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Exhibition by Ohlone Faculty, Dina
Rubiolo, in the Louie-Meager Art
Gallery
January 25 –
March 15th, 2013
Closing Reception:
March 9th, 6-7:30 pm
“13th Avenue”
The title of the
slide house references Gertrude Steinʼs writing about memory and her childhood
home, in which she famously stated, “There is no there there.” Steins’ writing
about memory is as non-linear as memory itself:
"...Ah, 13th Avenue was the same it was shabby and overgrown
and the houses were certainly some of those that had been...yes it might have
been 13th Avenue when I had been. Not of course the house, the house the big
house and the big garden and eucalyptus trees and the rose hedge naturally were
not any longer existing, what was the use, if I had been I then my little dog
would know me but if I had not been I then that place would not be the place I
could see...
If I remember what I remember then why do I remember that. I did
remember that but it did look like that and so I did not remember that and if
it did not look like that then I did not remember that. What was the use."
Gertrude Stein
This piece is
comprised of almost 10,000 35mm slides
that I solicited from strangers. I first constructed a screen, and then later
the façade of a house with these slides. The slide house connects the passage
of time with the domestic environment and the poses a number of questions about
our memories. How do we know what we know? Whose memories have we retained? Are
our memories based on our experiences or stories we have been told? Do we have
an accurate narrative of our past, or, is our memory composed more of thousands
of moments that may be random, layered, non-linear, borrowed, or created?
I collected the
slides by putting ads on craigslist. By far, the largest batch I received,
about 2,500, was from a gentleman whose family and friends would camp in the
desert outside of San Diego in the 1950’s and 60’s. I have a special affinity
for the design of this era and was completely enamored by the fashion, cars and
travel trailers I found in this group of slides. I spent a great deal of time engaged by the
adventures of these strangers.
While constructing
the screen, I began randomly combining two and three slides together and
holding them up to the light. I was attracted to the painterly quality I found
in the layered images, but soon became excited by the rich psychological
potential I could create by combining multiple snapshots. I began superimposing
my own narrative on their lives; making up my own memories of relationships and
connections for people I never knew. I printed
the layered images on transparencies and built the retro styled light boxes painted
with colors from the era to compliment the slide house.
The exhibition runs
through March 15 with a closing reception on Saturday, March 9th
from 6-7:30 pm.
I would like to
extend special thanks to ChiSui Tsai and Oscar Guevara for their generous help
with the installation.
# # #
For more information
please visit my website at www.dinarubiolo.com or e-mail me at dinarubiolo@gmail.com.
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