A chair, a tape measure, a ladder, a row of paint cans, a bowling ball, an empty bottle of beer: Zachary Royer Scholz's installation in the main gallery at the Lab, Yet to Be Determined, exposes the creative process of the artist, his particular capability to infuse ordinary objects with mystery and profundity. Part installation, part temporary workspace, part performance art, Scholz's exhibit is unique in that it will remain in progress until the closing of the show. The arrangement of objects is subject to change from day to day, charging the installation with the presence of the artist, even in his absence.

This exhibit in a certain sense emphasizes the aspects of contemporary art that many people find irritating, you know the people who while walking through the museum inevitably find a thermostat or lightswitch on the wall to point to and jokingly exalt it as a piece of art. Scholz plays with the idea of investing an artistic aura in ordinary objects, as most of the objects in the installation are the sort you would find in a middle-school multi-purpose room. He draws attention to previously insignificant details of the space: framing a power outlet, hanging a hose from the pipes in the ceiling, arranging debris in the outline of the shadows cast by the gallery lighting. Even the tools used for the installation, when not in use are stored "artfully" around the gallery.

On the back wall (when I visited), a portion of the wall was framed with painter's tape; below this empty "canvas" a series of paint cans was lined up on the floor with a drop cloth. This seems to be a particularly poignant representation of the artist's intention: laying bare not only the process of installation art, but the creative process of art-making in general.

--Natalie Hegert

(*Images, from top to bottom: Zachary Royer Scholz, Yet to Be Determined, August 13 - September 6, 2008; the Lab, installation photos by Natalie Hegert, August 16, 2008.)