at Harvard University, where the show was on view prior to arriving in the Bay Area.
Like Lin’s other work, it draws from material histories, casting a spotlight on the networks of global trade and colonialism that moved commodities such asin the middle of the gallery. This protective structure bears stylized images of bodies, not to mention, and is surrounded by ceramic hybrid animal-human figures that function like totemic protectors. Within the tent, more cats — rendered as sculptures bearing human-ish faces — can be seen lying about.
Candice Lin’s “Tactile Theaters” encourage a pair of participants to touch a table sculpture as they make eye contact.“Seeping, Rotting, Resting, Weeping” were produced in the early days of the pandemic lockdowns. In that way, they bring back some of its bodily states, such as the sheltering in place with elements of the familiar . Part of the presentation includes Lin’sfrom that period. Unfortunately, it wasn’t on view on the day that I visited — though it is reproduced, in part, in the show’s, which features a page from March 14, 2020, three days after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic.
But the installation also provides a counter to these moments of profound isolation, a time when we were all digitally imprisoned by Zoom. This is a show about bodies, our bodies, the ways in which they come into contact and the resonances they leave in their wake. Those bodies? They include lots and lots of cats..In a time of unrelenting drought, every drop of water feels more valuable than gold.