Jim Hodges: Craig’s closet to Unveil at NYC AIDS Memorial in June, 2023

 

 

 

Jim Hodges, Craig’s closet, 2023, Granite and bronze, 90 x 57 x 28 1/2 inches (228.6 x 144.8 x 72.4 cm) Installation view: New York City AIDS Memorial Park; Presented by the New York City AIDS Memorial, June 9, 2023-May 31, 2024 © Jim Hodges, Courtesy of the artist and Gladstone Gallery Photography by Daniel Greer

For those of us with the good fortune to have a place to hang our things, a closet is a magical container, a collection of materials, arranged by each of us that at a glance can reveal our values, desires, cares, and even our deepest secrets. Time itself is frozen inside a closet in contrasting meters and timelines, fragmented in things accumulated and arranged in juxtaposed order, stacked and aligned, quickly thrown or casually dropped there to be taken care of later. The scene is set, and the narratives that blossom come alive whenever the doors swing open, giving us a reading, a reminder, an understanding of who we are, where we have been, secrets, and dreams we hold. Boxes concealing our heart’s contours, scribbled messages scratched on folded notes and cards, photos, records, files, all the stuff worth saving for the reason that each thing signifies, all these choices contained in the holding space, the closet.

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