Artists Space

The Mountain A Bed and A Chair

April 9 – May 23, 1992

This project was an installation by Philadelphia artist Eileen Neff which ran from April 9 through May 23, 1992 and was selected by Judith Tannenbaum, Associate Director/Curator of the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As an integral element of the project a 6 page catalog/publication was produced to accompany the installation and provide explanatory and contextualizing supplement. This catalog/publication featured an essay by Judith Tannenbaum, acknowledgements by Artists Space's Director Carlos Gutierrez-Solana, as well as a selected biographical essay for Eileen Neff.

A black and white postcard with an image of a bed with a mountain in the middle of it and a dilapidated chair with the back hollowed out. Text underneath the images reads, "A Bed / And A Chair / Eileen Neff / April 9 - May 23, 1992 / Artists Space."
[A black and white postcard with an image of a bed with a mountain in the middle of it and a dilapidated chair with the back hollowed out. Text underneath the images reads, "A Bed / And A Chair / Eileen Neff / April 9 - May 23, 1992 / Artists Space."]

The Mountain, A Bed and a Chair is part of Cezanne's Dream, a recent installation presented at The Fabric Workshop in Philadelphia. Ms. Neff's installation comprised of multiple layers of meaning and constantly shifting perspectives, provides the viewer with interesting glimpses at one artists obsessive observation (Neff's) of another artist's (Cezanne's) perceptual obsession - in this case Mont Sainte Victoire. The duality of the profound, yet tenuous, relationship which Ms. Neff presents us with is underscored by her use of multiple dimensions and shifting perspectives. These in turn, come together to create a rich visual panorama, one that alludes to the majesty of Cezanne's vision, and Ms. Neff's recognition of that vision as integral to her work.

The Artists Space Projects Series, initiated in the 1989/90 season, is premised upon the idea of engaging Museum Professionals from around the country as guest selectors for an on-going series of solo exhibitions/installations of important individual emerging artists. These solo exhibitions are presented with the intention of offering to the viewing public, a significant portion of the current work of these artists. In this way the ideas of these artists can be considered outside of the realm of the "curatorial theme" of the group show, or conversely without the market driven pressures and context of the commercial gallery solo exhibition.

The Mountain A Bed and A Chair Exhibition Brochure

    A bed with a mountain at its center in a partially constructed room with a floor and a single wall. Surrounding it are several framed paintings and empty frames, a bench with fabric piled on it, and a high shelf with a skull.
    Eileen Neff, Cezanne's Dream, 1992. Mixed media installation. Photo: Erik Landsberg. [A bed with a mountain at its center in a partially constructed room with a floor and a single wall. Surrounding it are several framed paintings and empty frames, a bench with fabric piled on it, and a high shelf with a skull.]