LUKAS GERONIMAS
MILAN SANTO SPIRITO – CLOSED STORE

"GATE POSTS", 2018

LUKAS GERONIMAS (B.1980, TORONTO, CANADA, LIVES AND WORKS IN LOS ANGELES, CA) EMPLOYS PAINSTAKING ATTENTION TO DETAIL AND THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF CRAFT TO CREATE OTHERWORLDLY SCULPTURES THAT CALL INTO QUESTION PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS OF MATERIALITY AND USEFUL FORM. HIS WORK OFTEN CONTAINS FOUND OR GIFTED MATERIAL THAT IS OBSESSIVELY RECONDITIONED TO BECOME UNRECOGNIZABLE FROM ITS ORIGINAL STATE. IT IS THROUGH THIS ALCHEMICAL PROCESS THAT HIS FORMS FIND MEANING

'GATE POSTS' ARE A CUSTOM MODIFICATION TO A PAIR OF FOUND DOUGLAS FIR BLOCKS. THE DIMENSIONS OF THE BLOCKS WERE NOT ALTERED, THEY WERE MERELY CAPPED AND INLAYED WITH HAND-POLISHED ALUMINUM. THE CUSTOM MODIFICATION IS MEANT TO CHARGE THE OBJECTS WITH HUMANE ENERGY. THE SPACE BETWEEN THE TWO 'POSTS' IS CONSIDERED A GATEWAY - WHILE PASSING THROUGH THIS SPACE, A BODY IS TRAVERSING A VOLUME WITHIN WHICH THE ARTWORK HAS A PHYSICAL AGENCY. SO, WHEN YOU WALK BETWEEN THESE TWO OBJECTS, YOU ARE PASSING THROUGH A CONTEXTUALLY-CHARGED SPACE. WHAT LIES ON EITHER SIDE IS DETERMINED BY THE ENVIRONMENT INTO WHICH THE ARTWORK HAS BEEN PLACED. IT COULD BE THE SAME, OR DIFFERENT.