The Problem With Sterling Ruby’s Evil Bus and People Pen

by Art Fag City on April 8, 2010 · 8 comments Reviews

POST BY PADDY JOHNSON
sterling ruby, 2traps, art fag city
Sterling Ruby, 2TRAPS, 2010, Image via: The Pace Gallery

Is Sterling Ruby's art too simplistic to be engaging? Certainly that's the first impression I came away with after viewing his exhibition 2TRAPS at The Pace Gallery (formerly Pace Wildenstein). The show is made up of an evil bus with jail cells and a giant sound system. Next to it is what appear to be people pens, presumably for housing criminals before they load onto the bus.


Sterling Ruby, 2TRAPS installation detail, 2010, Image: Art Fag City

I don't know a lot about the prison system, but having never seen one of those bad boys on the road, I'm guessing the bus isn't a standard government transport model. It's pretty scary. Past the jail cells and sub-woofers of death, the bus is without windows and painted entirely in black. Assuming the goal is to torture a large number of people at once, this certainly would achieve these ends. Of course, the work is neatly placed in a gallery, so no viewer has a chance to believe anyone's suffered. This creates passivity to the work I'm not entirely comfortable with, given the subject matter.

Still, if I don't criticize the 2003 film Monster for presenting me with a cast of largely unredeemable characters, why should I penalize Ruby for showing me something else I don't care for? As a friend wisely observed the other day, the works are “obscene, huge, ugly, expensive testaments to brutality.” Put this way, the sculptures seem wildly successful. They are after all exactly as he describes — horrifying monuments to violence.

I still don't like them. At least when Monster was released I felt moved by the narrative. With Ruby, I worry I'll be waiting indefinitely.

{ 8 comments }

Mike @ MAO April 8, 2010 at 7:34 pm

I agree.. these works seemed flat yet flashy & even wasteful to me.
I walked around that huge gallery, thinking.. “Geeeze this space (and production costs) could have been used for something soooo much better than this!”

But hey.. what do I know?

Mike @ MAO April 8, 2010 at 3:34 pm

I agree.. these works seemed flat yet flashy & even wasteful to me.
I walked around that huge gallery, thinking.. “Geeeze this space (and production costs) could have been used for something soooo much better than this!”

But hey.. what do I know?

andy April 9, 2010 at 4:43 am

the most interesting part about this show is the story about the horrified truck driver who left the bus on the side of the highway and abandoned his delivery. both my short and long term memorys are shot, but this did happen and im hoping someone can re tell the story here so i can forget it again.

andy April 9, 2010 at 12:43 am

the most interesting part about this show is the story about the horrified truck driver who left the bus on the side of the highway and abandoned his delivery. both my short and long term memorys are shot, but this did happen and im hoping someone can re tell the story here so i can forget it again.

m April 9, 2010 at 1:07 pm

“…Come to Universal Studios Orlando and catch a ride on the terrifying 2TRAPS…”

m April 9, 2010 at 9:07 am

“…Come to Universal Studios Orlando and catch a ride on the terrifying 2TRAPS…”

Antonio April 12, 2010 at 8:16 pm

I’m into the work. I think there are many more layers in the work that you can explore -so many directions to go, I’m surprised people think it’s “flat”. Just the juxtaposition of music and torture should make for an interesting discussion.

It’s pretty sad to hear others jump on the bandwagon, and say this being “wasteful”… I think the prison system in American is about one of the most important issues to discuss… unless you’re ok with the statistics.

Antonio April 12, 2010 at 4:16 pm

I’m into the work. I think there are many more layers in the work that you can explore -so many directions to go, I’m surprised people think it’s “flat”. Just the juxtaposition of music and torture should make for an interesting discussion.

It’s pretty sad to hear others jump on the bandwagon, and say this being “wasteful”… I think the prison system in American is about one of the most important issues to discuss… unless you’re ok with the statistics.

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