Mike Cramer: 3Reel/3Real
Hogan, Best, and Haynes are inventions of Cramer’s imagination. For each persona he has prepared a sketchy exhibition history, critical apparatus, and distinct personality based on popular stereotypes of “the artist.” Cramer has also produced an ersatz documentary with about ten minutes on each of the artists, complete with interviews, critical commentary, “slice of life” footage, and shots of himself as each of the artists at work. The documentary, directed by Kim Clark (and showing at 8 PM on November 10, 11, and 17 and December 1 and 8), is crucial to understanding Cramer’s masquerade. Without it, the gallery viewer gets only a two-dimensional perspective on the work. The video frames Cramer’s project as one intimately involved with questions of artistic identity as well as artistic originality.
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Cramer’s work is humorous, but that doesn’t diminish the assertive way he pokes at contemporary art and criticism, the idea of artistic style, and cliches about artistic identity. Even now, writing this, I wonder if these words will wind up in Cramer’s next mockumentary, spoken by one of his black-turtleneck-wearing “curators.” (And the fact that I’m wearing a black turtleneck myself isn’t lost on me.) But at the same time, Cramer’s work is a good gauge of what you the viewer really want out of art.
