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Visual Arts by Tom Jonsson DECORUM by Lucy Pullen TRUCK Gallery Runs until December 2 It’s not often I can go into IKEA without contemplating the aesthetic benefits that owning a Tid apartment-sized sofa and some of those fancy see-through storage boxes would bring. Purveyers of fashion and good taste like IKEA and Martha Stewart Inc. have both made fortunes from the belief that what we decorate our surroundings with somehow reflects our judgment. In Decorum, Halifax conceptual artist Lucy Pullen questions the implied relationship of esthetics and good taste when it comes to our surroundings. Pullen allows decorative elements to take a break from their designated functions. What results is a case of carpet and wallpaper behaving badly, thumbing its nose at the gospel according to Martha. In the main space of Truck Gallery, roughly cut circles of carpet lie scattered over the paint-splattered floor. They become a maze that has to be navigated in order to approach the three photographs pinned to the walls. A large cibachrome print features the artist’s kitchen, emphasising the wallpaper pattern designed by Pullen. Contrary to established conventions, this wallpaper is oriented horizontally instead of vertically, sharing space with cluttered shelves. Although not seamless, it still manages to function as a decorative device. A smaller image on the opposite wall features the same wallpaper in an entirely different context. Now "properly" installed within the office of Mr. Carter, the president of Ernst and Young Chartered Accountants, the wallpaper has an entirely different effect. With Carter posed in front of his desk, the wallpaper behind plainly shouts "sophistication." There’s no doubt that this is what Carter had in mind. If these were the only components in the exhibition, it would work well as a concept. Pullen, however, decides to add two other elements. On the far wall is a large cibachrome photograph of a car in the dead of winter, completely encased in snow. A chair in the back of the gallery is surrounded and covered in miniature casts of bent legs. What are these meant to convey? These unnecessary elements are an attempt to hang too much on too thin a concept, and the installation would have been stronger without them. This exhibition isn’t an easy read, a lot of patience is required to appreciate it. Although I can respect Pullen’s integrity in keeping her hands clean of the esthetics she critiques, the work itself is not all that interesting as a result. Whether intentional or not, the poorly crafted images and carpet samples failed to hold my attention on their own – the essay by Jenifer Papararo which accompanies the exhibit was more interesting than the exhibit itself. As it stands now, there’s hardly enough to keep me interested in delving further.

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