WELL-PRESERVED

Silveria and Hameline pulled together the program of works over coffees, beers, and walks in the sun and rain, developing a shared language of expression that blooms through the selection on view. “We were thinking about this question of preservation — of what, exactly? What is worth maintaining and what needs to be left behind? What is progress? We wanted to offer a seed to start the conversation,” Silveria shared. This theme is reflected across Alyssa Kazew’s thrashed socks and stretched thongs, Anthony Fornasari’s bordering-on-morbid sculptures of a teepee and teddy bear, and a particularly compelling series of crayon works by Jordan Pallages, which chronicle a series of snapshots of daily, sensual, and sometimes mercurial life: thighs peeking out from under a desk, a series of bottles and medical glassware on a dark tray, an undressed couple huddled over a laptop in bed, and a partially out-of-frame nude form gazing into a refrigerator.

Writer and philosopher Robert Pirsig was a key influence, with excerpts of his work passed between the curators as they progressively collected the show’s ensemble. In his philosophical novel Lila: An Inquiry into Morals, Pirsig discusses evolutionary purpose and its relationship with history and the meaning of knowledge. “The way I see it, it’s about how civilization has reached a point of no-return,” Hameline said of the author’s work. “It’s about creating some kind of world within oneself. A chosen, undeceiving one based on human nature, truth, and heart.” From New York to Paris and back again, Hameline and Silveria sat down to discuss their first curatorial partnership, the legacy of Gaetano Pesce, and holding on to a childlike sense of wonder and curiosity.

Sam Falb: How did it feel producing this show together?

Paul Hameline: Preservation is my first co-curational project. It’s been a ride — a fun one. It’s been a great experience mixing friends, art, thoughts, and laughs — picking Paige’s brain and seeing everything through her eyes as well as mine.

Paige Silveria: It’s been really fun to collaborate with friends on projects like this. I’ve been curating alone for years, so I love having someone else to exchange ideas and create stories with.

Have you two worked together before?

PH: No, but we have known each other for a while and share mutual sensibilities for aesthetics, art, ideas, and humor.

What is your personal relationship to the artists and these works?

PH: Some I’ve met in the flesh, some I’ve met through a screen, and others I’ve yet to meet. Working with these artists is a practice in studying each other’s minds and vision of life, which is by definition, the most unique and unbiased encounter one can have.

PS: I’ve worked with a selection of the artists frequently over the years. Bill Taylor, for instance, is one of my closest friends. His work is incredible, though usually a little bit darker and moodier than the two pieces that we showed, which were more lighthearted. I found Cecile Di Giovanni’’s work online and I was so excited to hear that she hadn’t yet shown the sneaker cross in an exhibition. It was definitely the keystone piece in the show, exactly what we needed to welcome guests into the space and set the tone — especially paired with Alyssa’s thong image. At the end of the space were Mark Flood memes that he sent over especially for this show. I’m a longtime fan of his work, so I was thrilled that he offered us some exclusive work to showcase.

The exhibition text includes an excerpt from Robert Pirsig’s Lila: An Inquiry into Morals. Can you speak to its inclusion in the context of the show?

PH: I wasn’t familiar with his work. Paige sent me a couple of extracts which I thought were relevant to the idea we were trying to convey with our show — we tried to bring forth the essence of the souvenir, of a kid fabricating epic worlds under the blankets or in their imagination: feelings of strength, love, affection, and safety.

PS: This is one of my favorite books. It was written by this genius who was deemed insane by society and sent to an asylum. He then wrote two books about his experiences of having two personalities: his sane one and Phaedras, the Other. Lila: An Inquiry into Morals is the sequel to Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I’d highly recommend both, which deal heavily in spiritual philosophy and quantum mechanics.

Was CØR Studio a natural fit for this show? How did that relationship come about?

PH: I first went to their space for the Arcane Press magazine launch, for which Paige curated a show. Funnily enough, I went to high school down the road from the gallery, just by the water.

PS: I met cofounders Thea von Winning and Anabel Karos who run the space back in June when I worked with Lukas Gansterer and Erik Ellington on the photography show Different Times. We needed a space last minute and lots of venues were booked for fashion week. CØR was super lovely to work with. Even though the space wasn’t quite finished yet, the slightly under-construction look worked for the skate-focused project. Since the Arcane show that followed in October was also such a great experience, Thea and I decided to start working together on a regular basis. I’ll be curating around five or so shows a year, with a particular focus on collectible design.

Reflecting on Gaetano Pesce’s recent passing, how did you hope to honor him through Preservation?

PH: By making people dream and sparking up the ‘younger you’ that the world tells you to silence and forget. Don’t let that person disappear from your life. Allow yourself to touch, feel, play, and be surprised. This is a strength that is often undervalued or forgotten in regard to contemporary ethics.

PS: I interviewed Pesce in New York last fall and he was such a youthful person! He definitely reminded me not to take things too seriously, to enjoy and make mistakes. Here is something he said in that conversation: “Since I was 18, I’ve said I have the right to be incoherent; meaning, I say one thing today and I say a different one tomorrow. This is a way to be free and not to always think in the same way.” Preserve your sense of wonder, innocence, and curiosity.

What do you hope people will take away from the exhibition?

PH: Memories of childhood — dreams and imagination are important muscles that one should keep up, as some do with their pecs or ass at the gym. We can build ourselves safe, loving havens thanks to our heart, hopes, and desires. One should never forget the warm, loving times in apprehension of the frightening ones ahead.

PS: And in addition to what Paul’s saying, I always want to bring together people from all over the world, and to continue to foster the creative community of emerging and established artists and designers.