Richard Garrison examines mundane aesthetics of suburban American life and consumer culture. While parked in the lots of various stores, public buildings, offices, and schools over a period of six months, he tracked the distance and direction of the walk from his car to the entrance of his destination using a hand-held GPS device. All that information is represented graphically in this work: the length of each line is determined by the distance walked, and the direction is indicated by the line’s positioning around the circle, which corresponds to a north/south/east/west compass. The dominant color of each destination’s sign determines the color of its line. Viewers might recognize, for example, the bright Home Depot orange of the line labeled “home improvement store” or the USPS® Blue of the one labeled “post office.” Garrison’s methodological approach both parodies and pays homage to the systematic abstraction elsewhere in this exhibition.
–When We Were Young: Rethinking Abstraction From The University At Albany Art Collections (1967-Present)

–American Playlist: Selections From The University At Albany Art Collections