Multicolored ceramic sculptures, concrete pillars reminiscent of skyscrapers featuring comic book superheroes, children’s cartoons, eroticized manga characters, and ancient Maya symbols mashed together comprise ¿Quién no ha intentado convertir una piedra en un recuerdo? — a new exhibition at Pioneer Works by Guadalajara-based artist Alejandro García Contreras grappling with subconscious memories, inherited beliefs and myths, and capitalistic consumerism.
The show runs until December 15 at the recently reopened arts space in Red Hook — a low-lying waterfront neighborhood opposite Governors Island that looks out onto New York’s harbor. Founded by Brooklyn artist Dustin Yellin, who bought the organization’s 19th-century warehouse for $3.7 million in 2011, Pioneer Works is known for its cultural programming focused on both art and science.
Pioneer Works was closed for eight months until August while its historic brick space underwent renovations as part of a multi-phase $30 million project to make it ADA accessible (compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990). The upgrades include an elevator, slated to be completed by January; a wood-planked walkway leading to the outside garden; and additional bathrooms. It is also wrapping up a new ventilation system throughout the building that will provide air conditioning during the hot summer months.
Vivian Chui, Pioneer Works’s Director of Exhibitions and Special Projects, told Hyperallergic during a visit this week to the newly improved space that the organization has been “dreaming of air-conditioning and the elevators for years,” as the absence of these facilities limited their ability to do large-scale programming year-round.
Staged in a room where plots of sand cover the floor like a playground, García Contreras’s show acts like a “portal” into the artist’s personal experiences, lifelong “obsessions,” and global travels, from Paraguay’s tropical forests to Montana’s snow-covered plains.
But while it is deeply personal to him, referencing childhood memories from his upbringing in Chiapas, the show’s incorporation of internationally understood visual references allows visitors to build their own connections. This was part of García Contreras’s intention to create an “international language” that could be accessed by anyone.
“I’m remembering small things or symbols that represent something special to my personal story, but sometimes also connect with a full generation,” the artist told Hyperallergic.
Alongside ¿Quién no ha intentado convertir una piedra en un recuerdo?, the nonprofit is also displaying work by Bronx-born artist Le’Andra LeSeur in its third-floor exhibition space until December 15. Co-commissioned with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, the show Monument Eternal centers on a seven-minute film of the same name grappling with the racist legacies of Georgia’s Stone Mountain Park, where a three-acre engraving of Confederate leaders Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson is on permanent display. The video, which shows LeSeur falling in slow motion atop Stone Mountain’s peak, is paired with glass sculptural works and paintings that were created based on the artist’s bodily responses, including physical movements and breathing rhythms, during visits to the public park.
After its run at Pioneer Works, Monument Eternal will travel to Pittsburgh’s Wood Street Galleries, where it is scheduled to be displayed from February to mid-May 2025.
In addition to its accessibility renovations, Pioneer Works is also planning other projects. Earlier this year, construction began on the roof of its main building, where the organization is planning to build a public observatory that will house a nearly 16-foot-long 19th-century telescope, expanding its already popular stargazing and sungazing programming.
In the meantime, visitors can enjoy the nonprofit’s galleries and garden from 12 to 6pm Wednesdays through Sundays, as well as a slew of both ticketed and free after-hours concerts, readings, and other events.
