Manifest Destiny!

A SoEx offsite public art project by Jenny Chapman & Mark A. Reigelman II

Manifest Destiny!

Dates: November 13, 2011 - October 27, 2012
Location: 447 Bush Street @ Grant (Hotel des Arts)

Jenny Chapman and Mark Reigelman's Manifest Destiny! is a temporary rustic cabin occupying one of the last remaining unclaimed spaces of downtown San Francisco—above and between other properties. The tiny cabin is affixed to the side of the Hotel des Arts, floating above the restaurant Le Central like an anomalous outgrowth of the contemporary streetscape. Using a 19th-century architectural style and vintage building materials, the structure is both homage to the romantic spirit of the Western Myth and a commentary on the arrogance of Westward expansion. The interior space of the tiny house can be seen day and night through the curtained windows, a lonely beacon in the city's dense landscape, and an incongruous, haunting vision from below. The installation will remain in place and be slowly transformed by the elements through October 2012.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Chapman Reigelman is an emerging, bi-coastal public art collaboration. Their creative practice questions common aspects of the built environment and provides alternate interpretations of local history and identity. Their work is thematically driven and there is always a strong correlation between inspiration and formal output. Each project is site specific and they favor the process of research, exploration and discovery over promoting personal artistic agendas. This leads to a diverse body of work poised between abstraction and literal representation, but always guided by a clear conceptual foundation.

SUPPORT
This public project is possible with the support of The Graue Family Foundation. Special thanks to the Hotel des Arts and Le Central for their partnership and cooperation. Additional support has been generously provided by Sheedy Crane and Rigging Contractors, Endres Studio, Whiting-Turner Contracting, The Urban Farmer Store and E&K Vintage Wood. Thanks to: Rich Battaini, Double Dragon Wood works and Pseudo Studio LLC, Damon Ellis, Paul Endres, Samantha Felix, Neil Friedman, Laura Goldstein, Adam Holm and Tudlik Moerk, Roman Hunt Restoration and Remodel, Melvin Louie, Maria Mortati, Patricia Singer and Chris Virgilio.