Pledge, an exhibition staged by Fin Simonetti, first implicates thoughts of social ritual, fraternal initiations, national allegiance, and sterility with the sting of cleaning supply. From these unsettling bearings we enter a starkly laid mise- en-scene of artifacts, in which Simonetti examines both male pain and male absence with tenderness, alienation, and humor.
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The delicately balanced sculptures signal alarm. A marble fire extinguisher’s purpose is imbued with duality as both a mark of emergency and security. Disney-like electric candles stand erect in a nostalgic, yet uneasy calm—a single drip hangs like a tear or a pearl of cum. Canine paws, a prevalent motif in Simonetti’s work, are dismembered from the body with claws extended, prompting a confusion of perception. Are we witness to violence inflicted or exacted? Simonetti entombs these complicated multitudes in the bright gleam of cold stone.
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