The poem/personal essay/press release for Gluteus Maximus ends with a significant quote:
“Gluteus Maximus
a regal sounding name
for something that rests on a toilet.”
If the sheer truth and Grecian royalty of that stanza doesn’t have you hauling ass to check out the exhibit, then we don’t know what will.
Presented by There There, a two person art collective known for its fashion fusion projects and Jane’s Addiction installations, and The Java Project gallery in Greenpoint, Gluteus Maximus features mixed-media works that blend Classical paintings with Microsoft Paint-era blurred sketches. While mixing ancient Greek aesthetics with a Y2K mentality, the exhibit also centers itself around the thing we either hate to love or love to hate: our bodies.
“We had already been making work about how the body reflects culture and style through fashion,” say There There creators Loney Abrams and Johnny Stanish. “So this time, we flipped that around and looked at how the body can also become a kind of style.”
Flipped they did. Gluteus Maximus blends Phidias-esque art, body building, and household furniture into a cohesive space that ties back to the human form. Lawn chairs become 2015’s version of an ode to the ancient statue, while an ironing board displays two drawn bodies and a single broken chain link. Patio furniture never had this much of an underlying meaning.
Which makes sense considering There There actually got its start near the home goods section at Walmart. “We started putting together outfits and filmed ourselves doing a fashion show through the aisles [at Walmart]. We got kicked out,” says Stanish. “So we decided we'd come back, use a credit card to buy a ton of stuff, do a photoshoot with models in our studio, and then return it all for a full refund. That was our first project.”
“There There was born in a 24 hour Walmart in the Hudson Valley,” adds Abrams.
From Duck Dynasty-themed clothing editorials to exhibits focusing on the bodies that wear them, There There is on to something with their Gluteus Maximus exhibit —even if you have to “look back at it” to realize.
Gluteus Maximus runs through May 2
The Java Project
252 Jave St. #100
Brooklyn, NY 11222
MAP![]()
Photos courtesy of The Java Project![]()
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“Gluteus Maximus
a regal sounding name
for something that rests on a toilet.”
If the sheer truth and Grecian royalty of that stanza doesn’t have you hauling ass to check out the exhibit, then we don’t know what will.
Presented by There There, a two person art collective known for its fashion fusion projects and Jane’s Addiction installations, and The Java Project gallery in Greenpoint, Gluteus Maximus features mixed-media works that blend Classical paintings with Microsoft Paint-era blurred sketches. While mixing ancient Greek aesthetics with a Y2K mentality, the exhibit also centers itself around the thing we either hate to love or love to hate: our bodies.
“We had already been making work about how the body reflects culture and style through fashion,” say There There creators Loney Abrams and Johnny Stanish. “So this time, we flipped that around and looked at how the body can also become a kind of style.”
Flipped they did. Gluteus Maximus blends Phidias-esque art, body building, and household furniture into a cohesive space that ties back to the human form. Lawn chairs become 2015’s version of an ode to the ancient statue, while an ironing board displays two drawn bodies and a single broken chain link. Patio furniture never had this much of an underlying meaning.
Which makes sense considering There There actually got its start near the home goods section at Walmart. “We started putting together outfits and filmed ourselves doing a fashion show through the aisles [at Walmart]. We got kicked out,” says Stanish. “So we decided we'd come back, use a credit card to buy a ton of stuff, do a photoshoot with models in our studio, and then return it all for a full refund. That was our first project.”
“There There was born in a 24 hour Walmart in the Hudson Valley,” adds Abrams.
From Duck Dynasty-themed clothing editorials to exhibits focusing on the bodies that wear them, There There is on to something with their Gluteus Maximus exhibit —even if you have to “look back at it” to realize.
Gluteus Maximus runs through May 2
The Java Project
252 Jave St. #100
Brooklyn, NY 11222
MAP
Photos courtesy of The Java Project
