David Flaugher’s art encourages contemplation of the cultural and emotive power of everyday things. Influenced by the homes and studio spaces he has occupied, as well as his previous jobs at Detroit-based construction companies that clear out the personal items and debris left behind in foreclosed homes, the artist considers the shifting values and associations held by cast-off materials.
For this presentation as part of the Artist Project Series, Flaugher has created new sculptures and paintings that combine objects and imagery of leisure and celebration, such as decorative lights and snowmen, with an aesthetics of abandonment. The sculptural works carry the accumulated traces of human activity, and both draw attention to and disrupt the intended function of the found objects that comprise them. This exhibition focuses on intimate family histories—stories of economic struggles and housing insecurity, but also of celebration and joy—and offers a broader critical perspective on the social, political, and economic structures that frame them.
David Flaugher is organized by the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum at Michigan State University as part of the Artist Project Series and curated by Georgia Erger, Assistant Curator. Support for this series is provided by the MSU Federal Credit Union.
