Students packed the Zilkha Gallery lecture room on March 6 to hear the Silipo art series lecturer, Tom Sachs, discuss his work. Sachs described how he mixes viewing, doing, and consuming in his work, fueled by his belief that the relationship between consumers and shopping can be characterized as an almost religious experience.
Sachs began his lecture with some lively music by James Brown and proceeded to screen a slideshow of his most successful pieces, many of which he constructed from commercial materials. For example, Sachs created a replica of a McDonald’s Happy Meal using only Tiffany & Co. shopping bags. The piece’s attention to intricate detail extended to the piece’s individual French fries, which were individually formed from the paper. Sachs explained that his devotion to detail stems from a desire to fully understand the design and components of the original model.
Audiences can glimpse some of Sachs’ quest to understand the workings of common items in his reproduction of a life-size toilet using Prada packaging. Sachs researched toilet designs and faithfully reconstructed a toilet, even down to the commode’s bobber, made out of Prada materials.
Sachs, a graduate of Bennington College, has shown his work in galleries around the world, including at the Boeing Foundation in New York City, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Deutsche Guggenheim in Berlin.
Sachs’ most recognized installation, “Nutsy’s World,” features pieces such as a fully functioning McDonald’s food cart and a reproduction of an airplane bathroom. The artist constructed the bathroom entirely out of foam board and hot glue, although the components of the bathroom that came into contact with water were coated with wax in order to prevent deterioration.
The artist closed by urging art students to really think about their work and know more details than necessary. Sachs offered this practical advice in the hopes that, by understanding the mechanics and details behind a project, students will be more likely to defend and explain their work in critiques.
More information on Tom Sachs, including “Nutsy’s World,” can be found be visiting: www.tomsachs.org.
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