The Mayan #apocalypse may have come and gone, but it seems that our collective crisis anxiety has yet to be satisfied. Despite the 21st’s failure to launch, the continued popularity of Doomsday Preppers and Bear Grylls-branded survival kits indicates a pervasive, ongoing interest in the end. It only seems natural, then, that the tools of survival–an essential part of the disaster narrative–become the new means for artists to examine a social landscape in which apprehension has become the standard convention:

Steve Turner Contemporary is pleased to present ‘Immune Stability’, an installation by Lauren Elder and Amalia Ulman curated by Lucy Chinen. The installation will be arranged as a showroom consisting of two sculptures, four garments and a video demonstrating the functionality of the garments. These objects will be presented together as a survival kit, designed to cover the essential needs of a nomadic person in a state of emergency.

The form of the objects and garments is determined by their function: protecting a highly active person living in difficult terrain. Such forms can be seen in sportswear, hiking and camping gear, extreme weather protection and military design. The materials used throughout the installation adapt to hot and cold weather and change in appearance from day to night. One garment combines various fabrics, including Ecorepel, a textile that mimics the water-repellent properties of a duck’s feathers, and Coldblack, a textile that provides protection from UV rays while remaining cool to the touch. ‘Immune Stability’ addresses the undercurrent of anxiety that pervades everyday life as one anticipates the next social, environmental or economic crisis.

Lauren Elder + Amalia Ulman: Immune Stability
February 9 – March 9, 2013
Steve Turner Contemporary