Fantasy, Fetishwear, and Challenging the Cult of the Perfect Body | Dark Spring (Installation, Berlin 2020)

As the aroma of a few dozen decomposing roses reach the viewer (one at a time, by appointment-only), projections of rolling clouds bring light to the pedantic sound sculpture and painstakingly hand-stained garments comprising Dark Spring, a private exhibition held at @factoryberlin this winter. Presented in a three-dimensional mixed reality room enclosed by a repurposed underground railway door - the conceptual installation; equal measures fetish and fantasy, uses sex dolls to interrogate the cult of the perfect body while ascribing sound to invasive surveillance mechanisms native to the retail & advertising industries. Additional photos and information available upon request. Dark Spring by Tony Cruise from the Factory Berlin x Sónar+D Artist in Residence program supported by Beats by Dr. Dre. In collaboration with Rachel Crane. American sound artist Tony Cruise presents ‘Dark Spring (2021)’, a garment collection and sound sculpture. Created in collaboration with fashion designer Rachel Crane, the exhibition merges sustainable fashion with generative sonification to convey the positioning of clothing as an evolving musical composition. Bluetooth (BLE) Beacons typically used in retail for proximity-based marketing are affixed beneath the garments, advertising their position to a patch capable of generative synthesis. For this exhibition, Crane and Cruise embraced “wildly inaccurate” and “easily diffused” signals as framework for composition - seeking not to make a thing even, neat or pretty. BLE works independent of an internet connection; thus considering surveillance capitalism manifest through marketing and the ways sound and music are ‘sensibly’ employed in runway and retail contexts. The painstakingly handmade garments and nuanced sound in ‘Dark Spring’ represent a division from the hegemony necessitated by capitalism. The dolls on which Crane’s garments appear represent an inclusive ideal in the fashion industry and coincidental attribute to early 20th century German artist Hans Bellmer. In isolation, Bellmer constructed and photographed a series of dolls in the forests of Germany. His bizarre, contorted, meat-like pieces opposed the cult of the perfect body and forebode his expulsion from Germany for the construction of ‘degenerate’ art. Please note, this event is by invitation only. Guests are able to access the exhibition between 13:00 and 18:00 on 15th - 16th December. Book your appointment via Calendly. Due to current COVID-19 restrictions masks must be worn at all times in the Factory Berlin building, and guests will be admitted into the exhibition space 2 at a time. Dark Spring by Tony Cruise and Rachel Crane Art Direction: Tony Cruise Fashion: Rachel Crane Styling: Alessia Ansalone, Lucy Lentils Concept: Tony Cruise Programming: Tony Cruise, Tom Mudd Special Thanks: Sandira Blas, Lucas Garvey, Studio Above&Below, Dejha Ti, Ania Catherine, Soba 32, Prelude Agency, Whitney Wei, Ves Rustad, Et Cetera Labs, Andrew Melchior, Factory Berlin, Sónar+D, Beats by Dr. Dre, By Appointment Only is a series of exhibitions, shows and events from the 10 artists, creatives and collectives of Factory Berlin x Sónar+D's second Artist in Residence program supported by Beats by Dr. Dre. Events from December 2020 to March 2021. Show less