Asad Raza's 'Thigmotaxis' Exhibition: Art for New York's Unseen Inhabitants
Rethinking Urban Coexistence Through Art: Asad Raza's Vision for New York's Rats
An Artist's Unconventional Approach to Urban Wildlife Engagement
In a surprising move that redefines public art, Asad Raza embarked on a project to create art not for human appreciation, but for New York City's brown rats. On a warm August day in the Lower East Side, Raza guided a reporter through his new, largely unseen exhibition. He emphasized that these installations were never truly intended for human audiences, but rather for the city's overlooked rodent inhabitants.
The Genesis of 'Thigmotaxis': Art Tailored for Rodents
Raza, known for incorporating living elements into his art, such as exhibiting live trees or rerouting river water, now focuses on the often-maligned Rattus norvegicus. With the guidance of animal behaviorist Michael Parsons, Raza and his team strategically placed small sculptures in rat-frequented areas like parks, construction sites, and trash zones across the city. Parsons' insights into rat behavior, particularly their preference for chaotic, fragmented spaces, heavily influenced the design of these seemingly rudimentary, yet intricately crafted, gray sculptures, which were developed with assistance from MIT architects.
Sensory Experiences: Crafting Sculptures for Rat Perception
Understanding rats' reliance on smell and touch over sight, Raza integrated materials that absorb scents, such as burlap, and incorporated varied textures into the sculptures' surfaces. These designs also feature indentations for rainwater collection and multiple entry/exit points, catering to rodent preferences. The team used cameras to record the rats' interactions, observing genuine curiosity and delight, affirming the project's success without the need for additional lures like food.
Asad Raza's Expansive Artistic Practice: Beyond Traditional Mediums
Asad Raza's work consistently challenges artistic conventions. He describes his practice as a 'metabolic, active encounter,' transcending typical exhibition settings. His past projects include routing the Erie Canal's water through a gallery space for the Medina Triennial and diverting the Main River through a Frankfurt museum, allowing visitors to experience potable river water. Poet Claudia Rankine praised his 2019 work 'Absorption,' which transformed waste into fertile soil, as a 'revelation' embodying change and growth.
The Evolution of an Artist: From Producer to Visionary
Early in his career, Raza was instrumental in realizing major installations for artists like Tino Sehgal and Philippe Parreno. However, his 2015 'Home Show,' where he invited 36 individuals to intervene in his life, marked a pivotal shift, propelling him into his own artistic spotlight. This was followed by the critically acclaimed 2017 Whitney Biennial installation, 'Roots sequence. Mother tongue,' featuring a grove of trees cared for by attendants who engaged with visitors and shared personal totems.
Embracing the Unconventional: Rats as Co-Denizens and Artistic Inspiration
Raza's comfort with diverse projects stems from a willingness to embrace the daunting and potentially embarrassing. His rat-centric project joins a growing movement of artists working with other species, like Agnieszka Kurant's termite sculptures or Eduardo Kac's glowing rabbit. While some animal-involved art has drawn controversy, Raza's approach fosters empathy. He acknowledges the sophisticated intelligence of rats, quoting Banksy's admiration for their 'permission-less' existence and Katharina Fritsch's 'Rat-King' sculpture, reflecting on their integral, albeit often overlooked, role in urban life.
New York's Battle with Rats: A Shrinking Audience for Art
Despite urban legends of rats outnumbering humans five to one, a 2023 study estimated their population at three million in New York City. The city has actively worked to reduce rat numbers, including past efforts by a 'rat czar' and current initiatives to regulate trash disposal, which have led to an 18-month decline in rat sightings. Raza's project thus engages with an increasingly smaller, yet no less significant, audience. This diminishing population underscores the ephemeral nature of his work, highlighting the ongoing tension between human urban planning and animal co-existence.
Art's 'Purposiveness Without Purpose': Engaging the Enigmatic
Discussing his inspiration, Raza referenced Immanuel Kant's concept of art possessing 'purposiveness without purpose.' For Raza, this means creating objects that rats perceive as intentionally designed for them, yet lacking a clear, functional purpose. He aims for the sculptures to be 'slightly enigmatic' for the rats, rather than merely functional 'water slides.' The gallery exhibition serves primarily as documentation of this outdoor artistic experiment, emphasizing the process and interaction over a static display.
A Renewed Affection for the City's Hidden Charms
This deep dive into the world of New York's most reviled residents has unexpectedly rekindled Raza's love for the city. Amidst graffiti, urban decay, and the cacophony of the subway, he finds a unique magic. The project, and the intimate understanding it fostered, has allowed him to view New York through a fresh lens, affirming its diverse and often gritty charm.