Robert Kananaj
Consumerism predicates on the proliferation of commodities, which despite all of the procedures behind their creation – the formulation of ideas, designs, information, and the actual production – they are ultimately become superfluous objects to be discarded. Garbage dumps become their collection sites, that although are considered extrinsically worthless, they can still provide information, an overlooked intrinsic value. Such a dynamic has become indicative of our generation and modern civilization, steering us towards complacency with it. Robert Kananaj’s State of Being combines multimedia sculpture, photography, and drawing, with over 3 years of preparation, that strives to document this transition from use to disuse and the nature of objecthood as a societal characteristic. As Kananaj describes it “the birth of our medicated society, but well-designed domesticated society.”
Robert Kananaj, State of Being, installation view
Kananaj predilection began when he visited a dumpsite on the outskirts of the city. Rather than be deterred by the dirt- and stench-filled landscape, he instead drew inspiration from it. He began to take photographs of the mountains of garbage and the thick mists of dust illuminated by the towering lamps scattered throughout, which unfolded into surrealistic, enigmatic scenes he entitled as “Garbage Heaven.” It was here that he derived inspiration for the entire State of Being.
Robert Kananaj, Amnion
The central installation, known as the “Amnion,” is a massive organic structure created from synthetic materials. Walls of iron meshing gradually coalesce with used medicine bottles that are suspended like floating dust from the gallery’s ceiling. Much like an amniotic sac that houses and nurtures us during our developmental stages leading up to our eventual birth. A metal wire umbilical cord connects this metal-nest womb with a seemingly unending supply originating from the upper level of the gallery. The gallery’s floor meticulously lined with more empty medication bottles and accompanied by a crystalline sculpture consisting entirely of mirrors – the reflections alluding to the infinite supply of debris that supports the embryo. Medication bottles are everywhere as they overflow into the space above and below, not just through the umbilical cord to the amnion. Underneath one plastic bag full of those bottles, a prison suit is hanging from the wall with its concrete-filled shoes – confined by the overspill. Meanwhile, the amnion has broken as garbage bags and crumpled labels emerge from its rupture, therefore it is aptly referred to as the “birth of our medicated society.”
Robert Kananaj, State of Being, installation view
Pharmacology is a recent innovation that has improved public health and human longevity, and the residual waste is evidence of how reliant our society has become and how endlessly we treat ourselves. We suppose that since they have lost their purpose – to store and efficiently transport its valuable contents – they serve no further use. However, it is in this state that their value beyond being mere receptacles. In fact, Kananaj cleverly uses them to create his own receptacle that cultivates our consumptive practices, or rather the waste that results from it. His work is encouraging us to examine the developmental quality of the mundane objects abundant within our generation, something which we cannot alienate ourselves from since it has become so definitive.
Robert Kananaj in his installation
Text and photo: Simon Termine
*Exhibition information: March 24 – May 19, 2016, Robert Kananaj Gallery, 172 St Helens Avenue, Toronto. Gallery hours: Tue – Sat 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.