DAVID GURMAN ::::

The Reflector project as a whole explores digital field recordings as the contemporary and predominant mechanisms used to understand distant landscapes and cultures. The iteration of the project for this exhibition digitally presents a relationship between two landscapes that are politically and fiscally connected, while remaining geographically distant.

Reflector Project: Tigris-Potomac IKONOS Satellite View comprises C-prints of the Potomac River in Washington DC and the Tigris River in Baghdad. These images were captured in 2003 by the IKONOS satellite before Operation Shock and Awe. The prints are positioned such that the Potomac River and the Tigris River appear to flow directly into each other—two distinct bodies of water depicted visually as one. This speaks to the impending cultural flow of force from Washington to Baghdad. Metaphorically, the river runs in two directions: political and military control flows from Washington, sculpting the landscape of Baghdad, while a current of military-industrial spending in Baghdad drives economic growth in the US.

Gurman was awarded an MFA studio at the Headlands Center for the Arts in 2007 as well as the Toby Devan Lewis MFA Fellowship. He has exhibited at Patricia Sweetow Gallery and Swarm Gallery in San Francisco. His recent installations place readings of nature and constructions of culture in direct conversation with animate machines having organic biorhythms. www.davidgurman.com