In his work, James Schenck explores, interrogates, and reassembles the links between decoration, presentation, and materiality. "STUD" reveals the meticulous care that is put into the projection of a casual affect. The bands of color subdividing the two-by-four speak the language of considered and deliberate decoration, while preserving the viewer's knowledge of the lumber as a construction material. The lean of the two-by-four against the bar in the picture emphasizes the specialty of the photo-studio, juxtaposing the stance and rawness of the object with the level control suggested by the studio setting. These elements, in addition to the way in which the vinyl banner is hung low so that it unfurls onto the floor referencing the white backdrop, allow the work to exist at this intersection of casual and meticulous, making the viewer aware that this experience, like so many others, is, in fact, an engineered encounter, designed to play upon our desires and aspirations.
- Alex Walp