The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) presents Stéphanie Nava: Considering a Plot (Dig for Victory). On view September 16-December 30, 2011.

Considering a Plot (Dig for Victory) is a work in progress, developed by artist Stéphanie Nava. The installation is based on the specifications and history of English allotments, or subsistence gardens. Started in London in 2005 as part of the Institut Français Villa Médicis Hors les murs residency program, the project evolved over time and holds at its core issues revolving around the United Kingdom and United States government programs encouraging citizens to “grow your own” [food] during the Second World War, as a system of offsetting produce shortages.

The installation addresses questions of representation in drawing: namely the relationship between plane and perspective, issues around the notion of skill, as well as the importance of the line as constructor of space both in two and three dimensions. Nava draws from multiple genealogies of drawing, referencing archival, botanical, architectural and technical forms of the discipline all at once. The mixed media installation considers the role of the allotment, as a site of political, economic and military strategy; community relationships and of course, of gardening and urban farming through a narrative form that draws from areas of expertise such as urban planning and tourism.

Comprised of over a hundred drawings on paper and other objects, the installation is modular and of variable dimensions and evolves each time it is presented, potentially covering an area of nearly 2,700 square feet. Stéphanie Nava’s project critically examines the Victory Garden as a point of departure for urban greening movements in contemporary society, but also reflects incisively on issues of history, community and the practice of art itself.

Image: Stéphanie Nava, “Considering a Plot (Dig for Victory),” 2009. Exhibition view at the Centre d’Art Passerelle, Brest. © Stéphanie Nava.

The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit is located at 4454 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, and is open Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is free unless otherwise indicated.

Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD)
4454 Woodward Avenue
Detroit, Michigan
www.mocadetroit.org/exhibitions.html

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