W, plywood, stain, clear wood finish, 2016
T, plywood, latex, enamel, 2016
F, plywood, enamel, 2016
AEG Turbine Factory, Berlin, 2008
Coffee is an everyday commodity presented in the iconic, mass produced disposable cup. It is a frail item folks commonly see littered throughout our society.
However, when I reconstruct it by casting it from concrete, the cup becomes a solid, three dimensional piece that references sculpture. It lends some similarity to a ready-made; however, it is not a mechanical reproduction. Craftsmanship has been inflicted upon it, and it is now an artisanal reproduction.
It is still mimetic, possessing a reference or a debt to imitation; but it is no longer mass produced but a boutique ready-made if you will. It is a contradiction by being unique individually, yet still being demoted as not unique among other coffee cups. It can be formally contained, displayed, and documented by installing it on a shelf in a room in San Francisco, or by taking a photograph of it in front of an historical building in Berlin.
Strathmere, New Jersey, 2016
New Windsor, New York, 2016
San Francisco, CA, 2007
Paris Toilet 2015 (thanks GS)
Versailles 2015 (thanks GS)
jeffmaylath.com 