The "Venice Lockjaw" button is supposedly a piece that Johnson gave out at the Venice Biennale, although I have no further information. The speakers were installed so that I could play a cd of the audio from video documentation made by Nick Maravell of Johnson between Jan. 1987 and June 1988, that was included in Lightworks magazine's Ray Johnson issue (#22, 1995-2000). The sound piece is made up of short clips of Johnson talking in his typically idiosyncratic manner, and it perfectly mirrored the layering of associations he incorporated into his works.
Exhibition catalogue (front & back covers)
On April 28, 2012 the show was reinstalled in Milwaukee's Green Gallery Storage Gallery just inside the entrance of the above building. On July 17 there was a five-alarm fire that destroyed a large part of the building. Upon hearing about the fire and seeing a number of photographs I assumed that the show had gone up in smoke. Miraculously someone was able to get the whole show out of the building before the flames could engulf the exhibit. Ray Johnson would have got a kick out of this close shave, and presumably it would generated a whole series of works if he had been alive.
Photo credit: Sam Dodge
Green Gallery Storage installation
#10: I thank the people listed below who have kindly posed for silhouette portraits, 1978.
A selection of works from the exhibition. For further info refer to numbered works in the catalogue.
#9: The Brue Eyes Crub invites you to free beer at the Rene Brock
Garrely..., nd
#14: New York Correspondence School Meeting June 24..., 1968
#7: Untitled, nd
