Tom Sachs’ lineup of new works at the Sperone Westwater dubbed Animals, explores the presence of animalistic themes in our everyday lives. In addition, there’s also some quirky machines, installations and paintings that serve as a strange but trashy contrast. Each of his sculptures is hand made by piecing together plywood, foamcore, synthetic polymer paint, hardware, and scavenged objects including police barricades and phone books. There’s neither a Prada Death Camp nor Chanel guillotine in this series, but the titles and content of some of the works are nevertheless sure to get the public’s attention.
From Negro Music to Trumpets of Triumph and the infamous Waffle Bike, there’s a lot to examine and appreciate. For example, Negro Music is a big white-painted box with a retro gangsta-style boombox inside. The audience is encouraged to interact with it by placing an appendage inside and tinker with the various controls, which determine elements such as beat, vocals, volume and more. Our runner up is the Waffle Bike, which is essentially a mobile waffle making station attached to a bike. Create a turf war in your neighbourhood with the local ice cream truck as you cruise the streets in pursuit of customers yearning for waffles, whipped cream and syrup. Be on the lookout for more of Sachs’ work in the future!
