Aga Ousseinov

Alternative Flying Methods

SCULPTURE EXHIBITION
AGA OUSSEINOV

November 16-December 3, 2004

Gallery MC is pleased to announce the New York debut exhibition of sculptor Aga Ousseinov. Fanciful and surreal yet conceptually rigorous, the central installation posits a mold-making, sculpture-making, sculpture-destroying, and sculpture-restoring machine. Elements include a dust collector, melting effects, metal armatures, an on/off button, engines, and artworks in various stages of completion. Among the issues this ambitious installation engages are the relationship between science and art; the centuries-old debate over whether sculptors are artists or artisans; the growing importance of machine-generated fabrication in contemporary art; and the mysterious, sometimes poetic dialogue between the negative image and the positive image. Related sculptures and works on paper will also be displayed.

The sense of lightness—and often humor—animating this project is evident in pieces such as a relief based on a 17th-century flying machine and objects including a windmill, a stylized boat, and a submarine. Ousseinov’s stylistic influences include the hieratic sculptures of Marino Marini, the frescoes of Piero della Francesca (including the visible traces of restoration in the Arezzo Chapel frescoes), paintings by Cy Twombly, and Etruscan and Cycladic household and ritual objects. Among the works integral to the installation are a head inspired by a third-century Roman portrait and “fossils” imprinted with images of modern machinery. Mortality is an important ingredient: a piece that the machine has just created alludes to the violent death of the filmmaker, poet, essayist, polemicist, and novelist Pier Paolo Pasolini. The materials Ousseinov uses to create these and other works are as varied and open-ended as his references: they range from wood or metal toys to the most professional artists’ materials.

Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 1962, Ousseinov studied in Moscow at the prestigiousV.I. Surikov State Art Institute. During compulsory military service at the time of the Soviet war with Afghanistan, he sculpted likenesses of Lenin and Soviet generals and other propaganda pieces—a surreal experience that has played a role in shaping his approach to artmaking.

After completing his service he exhibited widely in Europe before relocating to New York. In the United States he has earned a living by creating theatrical sets, sculptural enlargements, and sculptural molds; restoring archaeological and architectural pieces; and creating objects for contemporary designers. These projects helped to inspire his latest work.

Catalogue available

Aga Ousseinov is a sculptor born in Baku, Azerbaijan (USSR), in 1962. He graduated from V.I. Surikov State Art Institute in Moscow. Since 1982 he has exhibited his works in Russia, Europe and USA. Mr. Ousseinov lives and works in New York since 1992.

Aga Ousseinov’s sculptures will be displayes in the GALLERY MC from November 16-December 3, 2004

no images were found