The
work of Clinton Sleeper is eclectic but trends toward conversations with the
nature of technology and issues of ownership, expectations, and the
established. Over the course of his work there are prevailing themes as
exhibited in a recent project Teaching
Capitalism to Nature. In this piece Sleeper attempts to educate the natural
world as to the inner-workings of capitalism and basic principles it seems to
not ‘understand’. He notes that most pieces are communicated through an
artist-specific lens. These perspectives are demonstrated through numerous
pieces such as Teaching Capitalism to
Nature which employs elements of humor, sarcasm, and disappointment. Many
of Sleeper’s projects draw from previous experiences in his life. This can be
seen in his music pieces and general disappointment with the music industry.
Many pieces are reductionist in their nature and convey a certain informalism
in their mechanical exposure. However, other pieces such as ‘TVs Playing 8-bit
Melody’ do not show exposed electrical components despite their extremely
complex nature. Another element of Clinton Sleeper’s work is the repurposing of
items. This is not in the sense of previous artistic conversations elevating
the everyday to ‘high art’ but rather the unconventional repurposing of items
so as to draw attention to the act or the object(s) own intrinsic social
commentary. Repurposing facilitates deeper thinking on issues of ownership and
established items. Sleeper’s maintenance art addresses these topics by creating
displays of “responsibility and humor.” Maintenance art is as much an art in
the final product as is the action of oddly misdemeanor-like repairing of
public objects such as benches. Other projects such as hanging swings beneath
billboards, function as a situationist response to the topic of ‘space.’
Ownership thus becomes the question, and minor modifications of ‘private’ space
act as small but powerful rebellions in their own right against this labeling
of space. Projects such as these from Clinton Sleeper communicate a sense of
detournement against a capitalist model.
The work from Clinton Sleeper serves
as inspiration in both technical and conceptual sophistication presented in
simple yet elegant visual compositions.
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