Jenny Holzer Unofficial

Zurich-based artist Miriam Laura Leonardi presents her first New York solo show, titled An Exhibition With A View, at JENNY’S gallery in Chinatown. Leonardi examines the interplay between art, technology, and consumerist culture – especially as it pertains to the commodification and media-omnipresence of prominent artists. Discover this custom-made electronic installation.

The first New York solo exhibition of Zurich-based artist Miriam Laura Leonardi is on view at the gallery JENNY’s. Her site-specific work JENNY HOLZER UNOFFICIAL AT JENNY’S CLUB is a custom-made electronic installation for the space, and a continuation of a conceptual series of “Clubs” that the artist has produced since 2019. The “Clubs” previously existed as door frames constructed from printed circuit boards or printed A4 paper, and each deals with the site of its exhibition.

For this iteration, together with Swiss designer Marco Buetikofer, Leonardi built the customized LED light installation from individually printed circuit board panels (PCBs), which are run on 5V and receive data via several microcontrollers.

The “Clubs” notions of belonging, competition and secret groupings arise from Leonardi’s observations of a population dependent on global technology, social online acceptance, fluctuating exchange values, and the hegemonic use of the English language. The American artist Jenny Holzer, known for her LED text installations, meets here with an “unofficial” Swiss imitator in the context of the gallery JENNY’S. The white on red text flows through the space, referencing the artist Barbara Kruger, her ubiquitous copycat Supreme, and the colors of the Swiss national flag.

Exhibition on view:
June 10 – July 23, 2022
Weds – Sat, 12 – 6 pm and by appointment

The Artist

Partners

This exhibition was made possible thanks to support from the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Swissnex, Presence Switzerland, and the Consulate General of Switzerland in New York.

  • Pro Helvetia
  • JENNY'S
  • CGNY
  • PRS