Playful Experiments: Roman Signer at Tanya Bonakdar

Agitation and Repose

I found myself entranced by a video of a toy helicopter playfully teasing a sleeping child, but unable to look away from the television next to it, where a man sat in an empty room rapidly filling up with hay that was being hurled to the ceiling from a small hole in the ground. These videos, part of a series of six by Roman Signer, kindle curiosity in Agitation and Repose, an exhibition at the Tanya Bonakdar Gallery in Chelsea.
The exhibition features mostly sculpture and painting touching on the main theme — as the title states — on agitation and then repose. An observation on the constant cycle in the world: disturbances, confrontations, activation, or tension all eventually find their way back to rest or peace. My favorite, and only notable part of the show, can be found in the back space where six average-size televisions each play different short videos, all being only a couple minutes long. Each action playing out on the TV tickled my fancy, and I couldn’t decide which video to pursue and observe the full piece. My eyes flicked back and forth between the monitors, and every time I missed a couple seconds of one video, something had dramatically changed or the video had already started over in another! This went on for a while, and I felt as though they were teasing me. For example, in Hay Fever (the video aforementioned) I could not pinpoint the exact moment where the room transitioned from completely covered in hay to empty again! Or in Dot, where a man appears to be enjoying an afternoon of plein-air painting; however, if I missed a few seconds, I would look back and all of a sudden there was smoke in the air from an explosion and the man was walking away, frustrated, from his easel.
After setting up a systematic plan, I decided to take the time to watch each video from start to finish without glancing at the other sets; in the end, I was able to solve the mysteries of each piece! What appears to be a chaotic shot on a spinning camera is confirmed at the end of Barrel: a camera is secured inside a barrel in a river while currents churn the container around in circles. In Helicopter on Board, a skilled toy-helicopter control pilot successfully navigates his aircraft to land on a wooden board that has just fallen down and resurfaced from a waterfall. Signer’s work is delightfully playful, and is reminiscent of Wegman’s video works from the ‘70s. The viewer may not always know what or why the artist is filming a certain, seemingly banal action, but the result is simple and amusing. It’s like a magic eye puzzle: you need to be patient and observe carefully in order to take in the full picture.