Publisher's Synopsis
The tract developments are emulations of utopian communities. Going back to the 1920's utopian cult Kibbo Kift made banners that they took to specific locations of historic, mysterious monuments and natural monument occurances, Silbury Hill, Stonehenge. The real estate developments around Los Angeles are not mysterious but can be branded as such. An escape from the city life, with names that connote a natural preserve, such as Hidden Hills, Golden Valley, Garden Paradise Estates. Even though they all reside within the smog polluted skies that everyone in the Los Angeles basin does, they poke the desire for utopian living in nature, a simpler time. How to forget about technology, automation and the consequences of our hyper technological age. The signage is placed outside the entrance like the banners of Kibbo Kift, which they would make and bring ceremoniously to these natural or historic places. If one meditates on it maybe it will become real, transposing the desire for escape and living unfettered in paradise, "getting back to the garden. " as Joni Mitchell would say. Kim Gordon Chronicles Vol. 3 combines Kim Gordon's Real Estate Paintings with staged canvases photographed by Josephine Pryde in vacant apartments and offices in and around Kriens and Lucerne. The photos, which were taken using purely analog technology, create a disturbing and enraptured atmosphere. Kim Gordon is an American musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the bassist, guitarist, and vocalist of Sonic Youth. In addition to her work as a musician, Gordon has had ventures in record producing, fashion (X-Girl), writing, acting, directing and has worked consistently as a visual artist throughout her musical career. She formed Sonic Youth with Thurston Moore, Lee Renaldo and Richard Edson in 1981. Gordon is also a founding member of the musical project Free Kitten, which she formed with Julia Cafritz in 1993. Josephine Pryde lives and works in London and Berlin. Her photographs and sculptures reactivate techniques and concepts from a variety of sources - including fashion photography, the natural sciences and fine art printing - and function in a more or less close combination with the specific surroundings and their attendant relationships. Josephine Pryde has exhibited internationally, she was a nominee for the Turner Prize in 2016. Pryde's work can be found in public collections including The British Council, Museum of Modern Art in New York, Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.
