Galen Gibson-Cornell

Lives and works in Philadelphia, PA

Artist statement

Exploring a new urban area, I focus my attention on what I call the “Invisible City” (inspired by Italo Calvino): a network of interstitial spaces - construction fences, signboards, and bus shelters - where street-posters and other printed advertisements are glued. These surfaces are often overlooked by both locals and visitors but contain valuable cultural information with untapped aesthetic potential. I collect these posters from cities around the world and weave them together into new compositions that tell a unique yet universal story. These ephemeral papers represent the heartbeat of a city. They reflect the social dynamics, attitudes, priorities, and advertising interests of its inhabitants. But because of their lightning-paced life cycle, (as well as ours) one often has no time to listen to this heartbeat or draw any wisdom from it. By collecting street-posters I slow down these inherently fast-paced materials and unburden them of their advertising duty. The artwork resists a straightforward read; like a glitched phone-screen, the fractured imagery misbehaves. The viewer is invited to question their expectations of imagery, as well as consider both the functional and symbolic power that public imagery wields in our lives. Street-posters are a near-ubiquitous phenomenon and have played important roles in many cultures for hundreds of years. I believe by preserving, carefully recontextualizing this material, and using it to create uniquely personal works reflecting my...

Artwork