Ryan Weber
October 20 - November 25, 2006
Opening Exhibition was developed by Ryan Weber, and features an oversized American fishing bobber occupying the gallery's front exhibition room.
Quite literally, the bobber is a fisherman's only outward sign that anything is happening beneath the surface. Anyone who has gone fishing on a lake is aware of the tension, tedium and pleasure of watching and waiting for that all-important "bite."
Recontextualized within the art world then, the bobber functions as a rich metaphor, yielding numerous questions while refusing to commit to any singular reading. Who are the fish, and where or what is the bait? Also of note is that the bobber is an "American style" bobber, further complicating readings of the work and gallery as in this instance the bobber is, once again, out of place.
Conceptualized as the gallery's opening gesture, the work examines the role and function of gallery space in general, while simultaneously acknowledging Schalter's position within the current flood of art and exhibitions in Berlin.
