In Search of a Heroine: Daredevil Installation

Zeljka Blaksic and Allyson Ross
Sat, Dec 10 2011, 6pm-9pm

Ross and Blaksic’s installation focuses on the tale of Annie Taylor, the first woman to plummet down Niagara Falls in a barrel in 1901.  Her quest to conquer the Falls was prompted by a desire for fortune, a concept that is present when viewing the modern day spectacle surrounding the Falls.  This collaboration creates a participatory experience for the viewer through various forms of media.

In Search of a Heroine derives from conceptualizations of idealized destinations within the United States and Croatia.  Through finding a connection between their seemingly disparate geographical backgrounds, they identify the familiar roots of myth and commemoration underlying these particular locations.  Inspired by natural areas that have been preserved in their respective countries, they will show present day depictions of Niagara Falls.

The installation will combine performance and videos, that will depict our experience at Niagara as well as illustrate Annie’s relationship with the Falls.

Allyson Ross(b. 1981) is a visual artist based in Brooklyn, NY.  She received a MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York and a BFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA.  Her work draws attention to our limited and predictable experience of natural monuments that are known to us primarily through iconic photographs.  She has shown her work primarily in New York and Georgia and recently completed the Artist in the Marketplace program at the Bronx Museum of Art.

Zeljka Blaksic, a.k.a. Gita Blak (b.1982) is a visual artist who lives and works in New York City and was born in Zagreb (Croatia).  She received a MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York and a BFA from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb. In her work she consistently investigates commemorative practices, culture of remembrance and thus related identities through complex interrelationships between dysfunctions, impossibilities and absurdities. Exploring possibilities and peripheral areas of different media, often combining sound, video and performance her works translates into complex audio-visual systems. She has exhibited her work in the U.S. and Europe.