The Arts Center at Duck Creek is pleased to present and then nothing turned itself inside-out, a social media inspired multimedia installation by artist Ross Watts. The exhibition will be on display from June 11 - July 10 2022, with an opening reception on Sunday, June 12, from 3-5 pm.

The installation holds up a mirror to Watts’ experience — and arguably the experience of many of us — living through the strange times of a pandemic. Watts says, “This work evolved out of distraction. In the midst of the pandemic, scrolling, looking, liking became a daily ritual, bordering on addiction. In a precarious time where isolation was suddenly the norm, it became a way of connecting to the world outside.”

The resulting installation is comprised of a series of images in 3 x 3 grids, a large collage of 729 appropriated images, and a video of confounding variables setting out the process. It takes a conceptual approach to social media — exploring the ways Instagram’s grid format and the algorithm’s invisible hand have impacted our visual lexicon.

“and nothing turned itself inside-out” reflects on recurring themes in Watts’ work and in social media, including a fascination with mathematical composition and language, and a firm belief in an agonizing persistence toward “perfection” through repetition.

With this installation, Watts moves beyond a preoccupation with materials to a focus on meaning, influenced by Herman Hesse, Jorge Borges and contemporary appropriation artists. As a search for meaning in an infinite simulated landscape, the exhibition provides a kind of self portrait of the artist. But it also challenges viewers to ask their own questions about virtual culture, and how the images on display — appropriated from appropriations — derive their own new meanings from proximity to each other.

Like all events at The Arts Center at Duck Creek, the exhibition and opening reception are free and open to all. We ask that you are respectful of our parking instructions and be considerate of our neighbors. Please check the website www.duckcreekarts.org for updates.