Robert Gober Tick Tock

Robert Gober: Tick Tock, like the exhibition of the same name--Gober's first since his 2014 survey at the Museum of Modern Art--is divided into three sections. In the first, a series of drawings depict tree trunks, human torsos and barred windows. The second section consists of 18 wall-mounted assemblages, including fragments and motifs from prior sculptures. In her essay, Helen Molesworth describes them as "what happens to memories when they are literally objectified--when they take up residence outside of us." The final section centers on a sculpture first shown at the 2001 Venice Biennale. Inspired by Gober's childhood home and modeled after a church on Long Island, it depicts a pair of cellar doors opening onto a staircase set into the gallery floor. At the foot of the stairs, a yellow door with a handle of braided human hair seems to leak light around its edges. Illustrated with color plates, this book is a testament to the artist's explorations of faith and loss through metaphor.