Tools in New Light at The Dennos

Feb. 22, 2015

Tools may not be your first thought for the subject of an art exhibition – unless you’re John Hechinger.

In the 1980s, Hechinger bought a building to serve as the new company headquarters for his then-growing, now defunct, chain of Hechinger home improvement stores. The empty space inspired him to start a collection of tool-inspired art from the 20th century, as explained in the exhibit’s materials:

"I felt that if I could show my associates how so many artists had celebrated the handsaw or the hammer or the paint brush, they would be aware of the intrinsic beauty of the simple objects that they handled by the tens of thousands." - John Hechinger

UNEXPECTED ART

By 2003, Hechinger and his wife June Ross Hechinger had accumulated over 375 works of art, which they donated to International Art & Artists, a nonprofit arts enrichment organization based in Washington, D.C.

IA&A has produced several exhibitions from the collection since then, including Re- Tooled: Highlights from the Hechinger Collection. This exhibit includes more than 40 works and is installed at the Dennos Museum Center in Traverse City until spring.

Don’t expect to simply see hammers, screwdrivers and wrenches set on glimmering pedestals. Some of the art does contain actual tools, but none of the works are tools only. They’re much more than that.

"The tools have been transformed, decorated or created out of unexpected materials," explained Jason Dake, curator of education at the Dennos Museum. "There are also photographs and prints which focus on the beauty of the tool’s design."

BEAUTIFUL BUILDING

Organized into four categories, the exhibition highlights more facets of tools than you may have thought even existed.

"Objects of Beauty" highlights the design and other visual aspects of tools.

"The majority of this section is represented by Jim Dine’s suite of 10 prints, Toolbox (1966), which features various tools arranged in simple, colorful compositions," Dake said.

"Material Illusions" gives a sly wink to perception, such as Alan Adams’ 1979 work, Lathe, which is made entirely from wood – the material most often worked on by the machine itself.

"Instruments of Satire" showcases tools’ connections with modern life, often with comedic effect, such as Stephen Hansen’s 1985 piece Man on a Limb, which features a man about to saw off the very plank on which he’s sitting.

"Tools: An Extension of Self " focuses on our particular relationship with tools as instruments that extend our reach and ability to build and modify the world around us.

EXTRAORDINARY MEN

The exhibit is full of visual surprises, from pop art by Claes Oldenburg, better known for his large outdoor sculptures, to common objects displayed in unusual, thought-provoking ways.

"The center of the gallery is anchored by F.L. Wall’s Summer Tool, a wooden lawn mower on a plank of wooden dowels," Dake said.

"While it’s perhaps not the first tool we think of – maybe even less so right now, due to the snow outside – it will have you dreaming of cutting the grass."

Jacob Lawrence’s Carpenters is another favorite of Dake’s, for reasons both historical and personal.

"Lawrence is known for creating paintings in series that explore the history and struggles of African-American people," Dake said. "This one shows several African-American men constructing a building, which was a theme common in Lawrence’s work in the "˜60s and "˜70s."

"I grew up around tools, with a dad who frequented the hardware store and who still builds things that I appreciate and admire," he continued. "So, Carpenters is familiar to me in that way – catching a glimpse of ordinary men doing extraordinary things."

ReTooled: Highlights from the Hechinger Collection is on display at the Dennos Museum Center in Traverse City until May 17. For admission prices and more information, visit: dennosmuseum.org.