YOU-TURN

March 2017 

Steel, foam-board, vinyl decal

Dimensions: L 308 cm x W 122cm x H 92cm

‘You-Turn’ involves two road-work signs situated back-to-back in the middle of the gallery space. Both Frames contain the same foam-board signs reading: ‘Turn Left Only’ complemented with an arrow icon. These signs work as instructions for the viewer, challenging the viewer to move physically around the piece, in a ‘roundabout’ motion. This therefore examines the signs dominance and instructional value, demanding the viewer to cause an action. This piece examines language and the performative aspect that signs have in our everyday lives, which we follow inadvertently.The viewer, following the signs instructions turns left around each sign, however inevitably they actually turn right, around the other sign, thus creating a notion of defining what ‘left’ and ‘right’. Placing these outdoor road signs inside an indoor gallery builds a road in the gallery, examining the everyday objects we often ignore as structures of interest. Together these signs build a conversation about the dominance of signs and how they demand its viewers.