Chicago
Advertisements tell people what to think, what to buy, and how to act. But not Matt Siber’s “Idol Structures.” The Chicago-based artist’s photographs and large-scale sculptures encouraged viewers to consider the structures of mass media communication and advertisements found in public spaces. It is apt that his exhibition debuted on the DePaul University campus at the start of the school year, when students are bombarded with advertisements. Siber’s work explores how advertising, branding, propaganda, and news media influence people. In keeping with this theme, “Idol Structures” emphasized the medium used to deliver the message, rather than the message itself. Most of the photographs omitted the sign faces, where advertisements are traditionally placed, and the sculptures exposed little or nothing of a brand or message. As Siber put it, the aim was to “disempower” the works, allowing them to be viewed as formal objects. …see the entire review in the print version of January/February’s Sculpture magazine.
