DIRECTOR DIALOGUES: COLE STERNBERG &
THE FREE REPUBLIC OF CALIFORNIA
AUGUST 26, 2023
HONOR FRASER GALLERY
Concpetual artists Cole Sternberg shares the origin story of his expansive political project, The Free Republic of California — tracing its development alongside his larger painting and image-based practice.
Cole Sternberg (he/him) is a conceptual artist who lives and works in Los Angeles. His practice contemplates humanity’s existential quandary: that of being hopelessly destructive, yet forever and inevitably linked with nature. Through varied media (including painting, sculpture, installation, performance, photography, film and writing), Sternberg positions the aspirations of humankind against the dominant and regenerative forces of the environment and the arbitration of time. For the artist, the conclusion is unavoidable. Human enterprises -- art, language, history, law, and republic -- are ephemeral / illusory endeavors that attempt to reflect, parallel, and challenge the ascendency of nature to no avail.
In recent years, Sternberg’s painting practice has centered on the environment acting as the true artist. Some pieces have incorporated poetry, suggesting imprecise narratives or descriptions that can’t be fully apprehended through words. His photographs interrupt time, while historical and cultural myths are pursued and deconstructed in sculptural installations and film. These confrontations frequently materialize in instances of erasure; erasure of marks and words, erasure of history, or the erasure of the natural environment. Sternberg’s works remain subversive in their unremitting search for truth, noting humanity’s attempts to create beautiful permanence while failing admirably.