John Sanborn was a key member of the second wave of American video artists that included Bill Viola, Gary Hill, Dara Birnbaum, and Tony Oursler. And though much of his early works were shown in celebrated institutions, from the Whitney and MoMA in NYC, to the Pompidou Center in Paris, his career embraced a fuller media journey that would take him inside broadcast television, to Hollywood, and to Silicon Valley. This exhibition marks the manner of this return, looking to music, the foundation, the pattern for his distinctive use of media formalism; it conjures up issues of myth and reinvention, as media remain an ever-changing medium; finally it acknowledges Sanborn’s role in performance and performative collaborations with major 20th century dancers and performers, settling the bond between him and his mentor, Nam June Paik.

 

Artists: John Sanborn 

 

Guest Curator: Stephen Sarrazin