Fast Forward premieres two new pieces by ELIZABETH SIMONSON. Both works simultaneously explore two major themes in her work: static structures that serve as an index of repetitive and time-based activity. Whisper consists of thousands of thin wires stretched across the floor in spider-leg like fashion. As delicate as hair in their consistency, each hand-placed wire arches over the segmented floor panel as their ends puncture the surface at increasing distances apart. Consisting of over 4,000 wires, the structure is governed by one organizing principle: the system behind the work is what dictates the visual outcome. Just as nature grows through the evolution of previous generations, the structure of Whisper is dependent on sequential logic. Accompanying Whisper is Sweet, a video that animates each sequence of Whisper. Every still is generated from color-coded drawings done by Simonson that were essential in the organization of Whisper. The result is a hypnotic steady march toward a chaotic complex conclusion of color, line, and pattern.

The enormous task of both building and sequencing aspect of her systems underscores the complex relationship between a rigid and fixed formula with the limitations of material and maker. Simonson has consistently been intrigued with the aspiration of doing something with machine-like perfection while knowing that the fallibility of the human condition will come into play, creating unpredictable and complex beauty. The structures she creates function like living organisms, with their own inherent logic and fragility.

Smaller studies works on paper related to the work above complete the show.

ELIZABETH SIMONSON is a visual artist based in New York City who has explored aspects of nature, algorithms, and imperfect systems throughout her career. A graduate of Hunter College's Master of Fine Arts program, Elizabeth originally moved to New York from her native Minneapolis to pursue a career as a professional ballet dancer with the Feld Ballet. Her familiarity with time-based, performative art forms has informed her exploration of sequentially based installations that at times take weeks to construct and are often very temporal in their existence. Her work has been shown in numerous public institutions that include the Kohler Art Center, Krannert Art Museum, Addison Art Gallery, Austin Museum of Fine Art in addition to galleries in Los Angeles and New York. Her work can be found in collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Goldman Sachs Collection, Hunter College, as well as numerous private individuals across the country.