Justin Adian Tipsy

Is it sculpture, or is it painting, or is it something else entirely?
This is the question that seems to naturally shadow the conversation surrounding Justin Adian’s provocative work. In Tipsy, on view at Almine Rech, Shanghai from January 13 – March 11, 2023, Adian continues to plumb this liminal territory with works that quite physically reside on a tilt, staunch in their sly and playful refusal to firmly alight on one side or the other.

The sense of unbalance in these works is compounded by their verticality; there is an innate,  oblique figurative reference in these pieces, which hang tall and flush to the wall. But the mysterious, organic forms of their composition confer upon the works a more ancient quality, as if we were witnessing a cairn marking the way upon a trail, or more pointedly, perhaps a totem marking that suggestion of corporeality.
Working in his signature style, Adian conceives of his individual objects through an elaborate drawing process that includes sketching first on paper, and then cutting his shapes from three, layered pieces of plywood. He sands, saws, and hollows out the wood in what he considers a continuation of this drawing process, albeit one that manifests through the use of hand, tool, and physical labor. From there felt is stretched over the shapes and then covered again by canvas. The forms can only come together in one way; Adian assembles them as they were dreamt of in his mind’s eye. The underlying felt gives the shapes their softness, a plush quality that bestows the viewer with an irresistible urge to touch. The perceived cushions of the work, like a soft pillow or the curve of a cheek, long for caress. This conjuring of pillows or skin provokes an acute compassion, and nurtures an intimacy between work and viewer that is profoundly humane.
With echoes of the work of John McCracken or Robert Morris in their refusal to commit to one medium or another, the “tipsiness” of these three-dimensional paintings is evident in their construct. Both Across the Line (2022) and Staying Put (2022) are notable for their Jenga-like configuration of mismatched shapes. In the former, a duo of skinny buttresses underpin a pair of circular shapes, which in turn hold up a slanted platform. Atop this wobbling tower sits one more ball, poised as if it were about to roll from the structure, and possibly topple it all. In the latter,  two slender, pillar-shaped forms seem to support three precariously stacked orbs, which themselves bear the load of three horizontally laid, slab-like objects. In considering Adian’s roguish construction, we know intellectually that the forms hang united on the wall, and yet there’s a fanciful, but powerful, impression that it could all be knocked over with a feather.
On first glance, both Empty the Sun (2022) and Hardscrabble (2022) feel sturdier. The boxy elements of Empty the Sun nestle against each other, as if in an embrace. With its wide, irregular rectangles engulfing a sphere at the center, the muscular composition of Hardscrabble belies the uncertainty of its title, a rough-and-tumble term for the struggle of labor. Upon deep reflection, we appreciate the tenuousness—and tenderness—of the forms holding together. Whether the center can hold is a question that underlies all art, and indeed, humanity.
Almost Too Much (2022) also dances on a threshold. Three circular shapes and a slim pillar again support two bulkier, top-heavy objects in an arrangement that seems as if it all rests upon a cushioned plinth. Adian allows space in his work for temporality to exist. The viewer regards it with anticipation; the off-balance sensation of three tremulous balls possibly holding a bit more than they can bear is tangible. Likewise, his cunning gesture to the pedestal, the workaday structure so intrinsic to the display of art itself, is another instance of the artist at play. He once again gestures to the question we began with: is it sculpture or is it painting, or is his work something else entirely? The viewer looks closer, resists the urge to touch, and is drawn ever deeper into the chimerical mystery of Adian’s guileful work.

Justin Adian (b. 1976, Fort Worth, Texas) lives and works in New York. He received his BFA from the University of North Texas and an MFA from Rutgers University. His work is included in the permanent collections of the Dallas Museum of Art, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, and the San Antonio Museum of Art. This is his third solo exhibition with Almine Rech.

究竟是雕塑，还是绘画，抑或是全然不同的其他事物？这一提问可说是自然而然地萦绕着艺术家贾斯汀·艾迪恩（Justin Adian）耐人寻味的作品讨论之中。在阿尔敏·莱希 - 上海空间将于2023年1月13日至3月11日举办的艾迪恩个展《非平衡的》，可见艺术家持续探索着媒介之间的过渡空间进行创作。其作品的倾斜角度是肉眼可见的，并坚决拒绝从任何一侧平稳落地，呈现出充满玩趣且令人会心一笑的意象。

艾迪恩作品所透出的失衡感，因其垂直形式而更为加剧；高高挂起、与墙齐平的这些作品，更有一种与生俱来的倾斜感和具象寓意。然而构成作品的神秘、无规律的有机形状，更赋予了作品一种古老气息，仿佛我们在一条羊肠小径上所偶遇目睹的石堆标记，或更准确地说，也许是一座象征暗示着肉体的图腾柱。

艺术家的标志性风格，更是通过一场精心策划的绘画过程发展构思而成。这其中包括：首先于纸上绘制草图，接着从三层胶合板上切割出心目中的形状。在创作过程对木材进行的裁锯、磨砂与挖空等工艺，也都被艺术家视为绘画过程的延续，尽管这一过程更多是通过双手、工具和体力劳动得以体现。在这之后，毛毡面料被拉伸到各式形状的木块之上，接着再以帆布覆盖。这些木块形状只能以一种方式结合在一块；那是艾迪恩根据心目中所想象出来的模样将它们集结一体。内层的毛毡材料赋予这些形状柔软质感，看似松软的质地使观众产生了禁不住想要触摸的想法。看似软垫触感的作品，如同软绵的枕头或脸颊曲线，渴望被轻柔抚摸。在唤起了观众对于枕头或皮肤的联想同时，也激发了每个人内心柔软处的同情心，在作品和观众之间培养出了深刻且人性化的亲密关系。

这其中也与美国艺术家约翰·麦克拉肯（John McCracken）或罗伯特·莫里斯（Robert Morris）拒绝仅专注于单一媒介的精神相呼应，而其三维立体绘画中呈现出的“失衡状态”也在作品的结构中显而易见。这在《跨越界线》（Across the Line, 2022）和《原地不动》（Staying Put, 2022）两件作品中，如同积木叠叠层（Jenga）的错位结构尤为突出。在前者中，两片瘦削的扶壁支撑着一对圆形球体，而圆球之上更支撑起一道倾斜平台。在这座不稳定的塔上，又坐落着另个圆球，似乎随时都会从结构上滚落下来，并极可能将一切都倾倒。在后者作品中，两道细长的柱状形体似乎在支撑着三个堆叠起来，看起来毫不牢固的球体，在它们之上又承载着三道水平摆放的板状物体。在观看艾迪恩这些奇特建筑结构时，我们能理性的理解并知道，这些结构形式都是挂于墙面上，但却也伴随着一种强烈的奇想，那就是它们其实全都能被一根羽毛轻轻一碰就倒。

另一边乍一看，《清空阳光》（2022）和《艰难求生》（2022）两件作品则给人更为坚固的感觉。《清空阳光》中方方正正的元素相互依偎，仿佛正在拥抱彼此。而宽阔、不规则的矩形包围着位于中心的球体，建构出的肌肉线条结构掩盖了《艰难求生》标题中的不安定感，这是指向劳动者挣扎生存的词汇。在经过深刻的反思后，我们逐渐能欣赏到这些联合一体的形式中，所包含的脆弱与温柔。然而这团体的重心是否能被维持住，是所有艺术、甚至是面向全人类的根本提问。

《即将承受不住》（2022）也是在阈值范围的边界游走。三个圆形以及一个纤细柱状，再度支撑着两个体型、重量更甚的物体，其排列组合的方式让这些物体似乎都是被摆放在一个有软垫的底座上。艾迪恩在其作品中也保留了一种瞬时性——观众满心期待地看着作品；这即将失去平衡、令人颤栗的三个球可能正在承受比它们所能承受的更多，这一点令人真切感受。而同样，艺术家在作品中对底座——这个用于展示艺术品至关重要的平凡结构的巧妙翻转，也是艾迪恩于创作中发挥玩趣的表现。他再次呼应着我们最初的提问：这究竟是雕塑，还是绘画，抑或是全然不同的其他事物？于是观众更贴近仔细观察，并抗拒着想触摸的冲动，然后被深深地吸引到了艾迪恩作品扣人心弦、充满悬念的奇幻之谜中。

贾斯汀·艾迪恩（于1976年出生于德克萨斯州沃思堡）现工作生活于纽约，获得北德克萨斯大学艺术学士，以及罗格斯大学艺术硕士学位，其作品被达拉斯艺术博物馆、沃斯堡现代艺术博物馆、鲍登学院艺术博物馆和圣安东尼奥艺术博物馆永久收藏。此次展览是艺术家于阿尔敏·莱希画廊举办的第三次个展。

文/杰西卡·霍姆斯（作家、艺评人）