Black Cube’s Drive-In: Car Culture
Building off the first exhibition Drive-In: Personal Spaces, the second installation Drive-In: Car Culture, included the works of 12 Colorado artists exhibiting at a warehouse in Englewood. The concept behind these Black Cube exhibitions outlines the dichotomy of individuality and freedom that cars can provide while also incurring restrictions and limitations. Cortney Lane Stell, Chief Curator + Executive Director of Black Cube, finds that while the automobile industry is shifting, particularly here in Denver, artists’ place in society is likewise shifting. As such, it was timely for the presenting artists to reflect on their personal relationship to their vehicles beyond the symbol of freedom. Participating artists included Alicia Ordal, Chrissy Espinoza, Don Fodness, Esther Hernandez, Graham Eschen, Jaime Carrejo, John McEnroe, Kahlil Cezanne, Noah Manos, Stephanie Kantor, Theresa Anderson, and Zach Reini.
Corey H. Jones of Colorado Public Radio reported on the exhibition prior to the event, reminding the public of the first Drive-In that took place on Saturday, August 19th, and encouraging people to view the exhibition on Saturday, December 16th.
Denver has been growing like crazy, and we’ve all felt it on the roads. Cities are planned around roads and buildings are built around the number of parking spaces they can fit, so it’s something that has a very heavy hand in our society.
Cortney Lane Stell, Chief Curator + Executive Director of Black Cube
Similar to the first installation of Drive-In, Stell hoped that Drive-In: Car Culture would encourage the audience to view the role that cars play in their own lives and how they are impacting the world each time they get behind the wheel. Jones ventured to the exhibition site to meet with presenting artists and got a sneak preview of the cars to be displayed. To read the full article and view more pictures, visit Colorado Public Radio.
Ray Mark Rinaldi of The Denver Post also completed a write-up of the event. The article, titled “Car art: Denver’s one-night-only spin on “Drive-in” uses Nissans, Dodges and BMWs as mini-galleries”, looked at the underlying meaning of artists using their cars to exhibit artwork. “Denver is growing like crazy and we feel it the most on the road,” Stell told Rinaldi, “Our relationships to our cars are dynamic and changing right now.” While the artwork will be fun, it will also be challenging and encourage the audience to ask questions, and even venture into self-reflection. Rinaldi tied the article to advancements in technology and how this would impact the culture of automobiles, including driverless cars, ride sharing, and alternative sources to fuel cars.
