OPENING RECEPTION WITH THE ARTIST
SATURDAY, MAY 17th, 5 to 7 PM

The inclusion of noises in [music]…is an admission of the liveliness of sound whether it originates inside or outside the boundaries of art.

                                                                                                                                                           -John Cage

RADIO ROCKS

Larry Becker Contemporary Art is proud to present Radio Rocks, Dove Bradshaw’s latest time-sculptures; the introduction of sound heralds a new involvement with Indeterminacy in her work. Beginning in 1969 she embraced Indeterminacy with the unpredictability of birds, then moved onto materials susceptible to weather and atmospheric conditions, the chance positioning of elements, the gradual erosion of salt and stone by water, and the use of other unstable substances such as acetone, mercury, and sulfur. Fourteen years ago, she first exploited pyrite’s instability to weather sculptures; upon learning that it was used in crystal radios in 1998 she conceived of her first sound-sculpture. Designs for Radio Rocks were developed over a period of two years in consultation with inventor Robert Bishop who executed them according to Bradshaw’s plans.

In 2006 the Baronessa Lucrezia Durini commissioned the first permanent installation in Bolognano, Italy. Pyrite and galena, acting as non-linear mixers continuously draw in random local and world band short waves. A third receiver, using technology developed by the satellite industry, channels live microwave sounds identified as echoes of the Big Bang. This exhibition features three cone-shaped sculptures, each composed of a different stone –Wissahickon schist, Pocono sandstone, and a basalt mixture. Their shapes, chosen to evoke cairns once used as Neolithic astronomical markers, also function as multidirectional antennae. Within each sculpture there are three radios, each designed to receive frequencies from a different zone – local, world band short-wave, and outer space. In addition to galena, and pyrite, fluorite, and tourmaline act as non-linear mixers and are computer programmed to attract random local and world-band stations. Hematite acts as a mixer continuously channeling a Weather Radio station. For the first time for this exhibition live radio emissions from Jupiter will be transmitted on a dedicated line from a radio telescope at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) in Rosman, North Carolina. Random radio storms including S-Bursts – bursts of less than a hundredth of a second occurring during storms lasting for two or three hours – and Bow Shocks – the sound of solar windflow hitting Jupiter's magnetic field will be captured. Levels are set at a murmur – the sounds from space invoking celestial harmonies that from the quieter time of Pythagoras have been referred to as the “Music of the Spheres.”  

QUICK CONSTRUCTIONS

The Quick Constructions series were started in 2006. Their composition is chance determined with templates thrown onto paper that has been brushed with beeswax. Tape, silver leaf, liver of sulfur, varnish, and cement pigments contribute to the surface topography. Each of the works is approximately 26 x 20 inches in size.

They relate to Dove Bradshaw’s Carbon Removals of 1981-1992 in which thrown tea, grass, hair, and fur are adhered to a tacky surface that is subsequently applied to carbon paper, burnished and removed. A negative impression resembling the incising of fossils emerged much like the low relief in these Constructions.

Exhibition Checklist

First Room (on floor / front to back):

1. Radio Rocks I: Local, World Band Short-Wave, and Microwave Signal Converter on Pocono sandstone cairn 1998/2008 Pyrite mixer in copper tetrahedron is computer programmed to pick up live random World Band Short-Wave frequencies; Fluorite mixer in copper spiral is programmed to pick up live random local frequencies; Microwave signal converter amplifies echoes of the Big Bang.

2. Radio Rocks II: Jovian Radio Telescope Reception, Local, and World Band Short-Wave on Basalt mixture cairn 1998/2008 Galena in copper sphere is computer programmed to pick up live random local frequencies; Pyrite mixer in copper triangle is computer programmed to pick up live random World Band Short-Wave frequencies; Live radio emissions from Jupiter are transmitted via computer on a dedicated line from a radio telescope at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) in Rosman, North Carolina and Lanihuli Radio Observatory in Kaneohe, Hawaii.

3. Radio Rocks III: Weather Radio, World Band Short-Wave, and Microwave Signal Converter on Wissahickon schist cairn 1998/2008 Black tourmaline mixer in copper cube is computer programmed to continuously pick up a dedicated Weather Radio frequency; Hematite in copper circle is programmed to receive random World Band Short-Wave frequencies; Microwave signal converter amplifies echoes of the Big Bang

Radio Emissions from Jupiter are transmitted live from Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute, PARI, Rosman, North Carolina. Florida State University in Florida

First Room: on wall beginning from window counter clockwise

4. Jupiter’s Moons [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 5/8 x 3 inches

5. Jovian Dust Storm [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ¾ x 2 7/8 inches

6. Radio Rock III [Pyrite mixer and Hematite Weather Radio]
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

7. Radio Rock III: Weather, World Band Short-Wave Radio and Microwave Radio
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

8. Radio Rock II [Black tourmaline and galena mixers]
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

9. Radio Rock II: Jovian Radio Telescope Reception, Local, and World Band Short- Wave on Basalt Mixture
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

10. Radio Rock I [Pyrite and Fluorite mixers]
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

11. Radio Rock I: Local, World Band Short-Wave, and Microwave Sounds on Pocono Sandstone
1998/2008
Pencil on hand made paper

12. Radio Rocks
1998
Pencil on hand made paper
4 ½ x 4 ½ inches

13. Radio Rock
1998
Pencil on hand made paper
4 ½ x 4 ½ inches

First Room: on North wall (from doorway of second room):

14. Jovian Aurora [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 5/8 x 3 inches

15. Jupiter’s Plasma [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ¾ x 3 inches

16. Jupiter’s Magnetosphere [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 5/8 x 3 inches

17. S Burst [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ¾ x 3 inches

18. Io’s Volcano [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ½ x 2 ¾ inches

19. Jovian Dust Stream [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 3/8 x 2 5/8 inches

20. Bow Shock [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ¼ x 2 ½ inches

21. Jovian Radio Storm [Contingency Jet]
2007
Silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
3 ¾ x 3 inches

Second Room, counter clockwise from right at doorway:

22. Quick Construction with Umber II
2007
Umber, silver, liver of sulfur, varnish, beeswax on paper
25 x 19 ½ inches

23. Quick Construction with Umber I 2007
Umber, silver, liver of sulfur, varnish, beeswax on paper
24 ¼ x 19 ¼ inches

24. Quick Construction II
2006
Titanium dioxide, silver, liver of sulfur, varnish, beeswax on paper
25 x 19 ½ inches

25. Quick Construction with Blue
2007
Titanium dioxide, silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
25 x 19 ½ inches

26. Quick Construction with Curves
2007
Titanium dioxide, silver, liver of sulfur, varnish, beeswax on paper
28 ½ x 21 inches

Second Room near office doors:

27. Quick Construction with Yellow and Blue
2008
Meproof yellow, silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
25 ½ x 19 ½ inches

28. Quick Construction with Yellow
2008
Meproof yellow, silver, liver of sulfur, tape, varnish, beeswax on paper
25 ¼ x 19 ½ inches