Zigi's Exhibit or what I do on the side

     When I walked into the LPCA gallery late Monday afternoon I realized I was not prepared for the job that awaited me. Art had arrived from Zigi Ben-Haim for exhibit wrapped in tons of bubble wrap and sheets of heavy plastic. Three 7-foot sculptures were standing uncermoniously in the space. The young man who delivered the work from New York City pointed out some tips for handling of the work. He was anxious to take off back to the city.

     I unwrapped a couple of pieces. It become obvious this would not be a classic hanging of paintings. The majority of pieces are on custom aluminum frames and not wired to hang. It would be a balancing act between two nails to hang most pieces. The bubble level would be indispensable.

     More interesting to me though was the work itself. As the installer for the art I have looked at Zigi's work for the last two days — longer than anyone will for the duration of the exhibit with perhaps exception of the box office staff.

     While the work was still in plastic I was really not sure of what I was looking at. But the process of unwrapping and hanging revealed an interesting exhibit of current works by a renowned artist. The work is like a shape shifter: first you see one thing - then another. Organic shapes move literally and figuratively in aluminum, canvas, burlap, hardware cloth, light, shadow and paint.
 

Zigi Ben-Haim: Made in the USA - at Lake Placid Center for the Arts

      The largest piece - 80 inches by 144 inches - was hung first. Standing back from it I saw it would provide the viewer with recognizable icons providing a culmination or primer, depending on ones point of view, for the rest of the exhibit.

     Zigi's work is not anything like the work I do but by being so close to the work for the three-day installation, I found it was an eye opener, providing an appreciation of another artists process and conceptualization of work. It is definitely worth a visit to the gallery for art enthusiasts and regional artists.