SUMMER 2007, WM Issue #4: Exene Cervenka @ Western Project, Culver City, California

Exene Cervenka

A Fifth of Tomorrow

June 9-July 14, 2007

Western Project- Culver City, California

Hello God!---Hello Exene!

“He hangs the earth on nothing”, (from one of  Exene’s journals 2007) is representative of the theme in Exene’s collages on display at Western Project-Culver City. The addition of a spiritual dimension in a person’s life can take on many forms. Even though proverbs from various apostles are included in Exene’s work, such as “do nothing” from John15:5 and “ask and find your heart” from Mathew 7:7, she claims not to be a religious person.

Exene is an iconic figure in the Punk rock scene and one of the architects of the band “X”.  At Western Project, she is a collector of the collective. Like many collage artists, Exene has a vast inventory of man’s tidbits of paper, objects, and advertisements. Much of the content of Exene’s collages is her response to the cosmic dance of man with God. As she declares in the text of the collage, “Man and His Symbols”: MAN AND HIS SYMBOLS I AM SICK OF HIS HITS AND HIS MISSES MR AND MRS…”

As a singer and musician, Exene’s words are a catalyst. The message is like a painting. Her collages are in turn a form of two-dimensional music. Even though she said she was not influenced by any particular visual artist, I found that we both have a mutual admiration for Marcel Duchamp. One of the original inspirations for Exene’s collages was an encounter with a bent license plate that she realized would look great on a wall all by itself.

Exene the musician deals with venues for her music. In terms of a venue for her collages, she contently said that the space and the directors of Western Project, Cliff and Erin, were a perfect fit for her work.

Sandra Vista

sandravista@sbcglobal.net

www.sandravista.net

WESTERN PROJECT- 3830 Main Street- Culver City, CA 90232

Cliff Benjamin & Erin Kermanikian (western-project.com)

310-289-5223