On the opening night of lighting designer Lindsey Adelman's new installation, a group of 16 dancers pulsed their way through a music video that looped in a dark room at Wright, a gallery on Manhattan's Upper East Side.
The cast of the video – from the dancers to the song's composer, Leo Madriz – wasn't the progeny of Lady Gaga (though they clearly know her repertoire), but rather Adelman and others from her studio; Laura Young, Adelman's former director of operations, is the lead vocalist. The choreography is no joke, but they're clearly having some fun. The video for 'Show Me' – the title of both the song and the exhibition – features pieces from the New York-based designer's latest collection. With punk-inflected jewellery (fringed, gold ear cuffs and leather bracelets with gold quills) to gilded mirrors adorned with waves of mushroom gills and luminaries reminiscent of some of Adelman's 'Cherry Bomb' fixtures, the clip has a neat gothic sensibility, mixed with a smattering of a A Midsummer Night's Dream. The jewellery and mirrors – as well as a five-foot-long gold candelabrum, flickering away even as the crowd squeezed close to it – helped to set an alluringly dark-romantic mood.
Adelman opened the studio in 2006 with her first product, the 'Branching Bubble' chandelier; since then, the business has expanded with many more fixtures and a range of home objects. She sees her evolution into other mediums as a natural progression of the studio's work, as well as an excuse to do something fun. 'I'm folding in the personal interests of the company,' Adelman says in the catalogue accompanying the show. 'People often ask that first question, "How did you come up with this idea of doing a music video?", when it doesn't feel like that at all. It just feels like it was in me, and I got an opportunity to let it out and bring my daily work life into it.'
The cast of the video includes Adelman and other members of her studio; Laura Young, Adelman's former director of operations, is the lead vocalist
The video features pieces from the New York-based designer's latest collection
Since the studio's launch in 2006, it has expanded with many more fixtures and a range of homeware objects. Adelman sees her evolution into other mediums as a natural progression of the studio's work, as well as an excuse to do something fun
Adelman's new collection includes gilded mirrors adorned with waves of mushroom gills...
... as well as punk-inflected jewellery – from fringed, gold ear cuffs to leather bracelets with gold quills
The show's jewellery and mirrors, alongside this five-foot-long gold candelabrum, set a darkly romantic mood
Adelman says: 'People often ask that first question, "How did you come up with this idea of doing a music video?", when it doesn't feel like that at all. It just feels like it was in me, and I got an opportunity to let it out and bring my daily work life into it'
'Show Me' will be on view at Wright gallery until 1 August
ADDRESS
Wright gallery NY
Parke-Bernet Building
980 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10075
-
These sculptural mirrors embody the relaxed spirit of the MedPhotographed in a Mallorcan residence designed by local studio Munarq, these new sculptural mirrors by New York furniture company Ready To Hang are inspired by the sea
-
African brutalism explored: from bold experimentation to uncertain futureDiscover the complex and manifold legacies of brutalist architecture in Africa with writer and curator Fabiola Büchele
-
What to see at Frieze Seoul 2025Don't miss this mix of contemporary and established artists at Frieze Seoul, 3-6 September; here’s our guide to the fair and what's on around the city
-
Richard Prince recontextualises archival advertisements in TexasThe artist unites his ‘Posters’ – based on ads for everything from cat pictures to nudes – at Hetzler, Marfa
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekAnother week, another flurry of events, opening and excursions showcasing the best of culture and entertainment at home and abroad. Catch our editors at Scandi festivals, iconic jazz clubs, and running the length of Manhattan…
-
The best Ruth Asawa exhibition is actually on the streets of San FranciscoThe artist, now the subject of a major retrospective at SFMOMA, designed many public sculptures scattered across the Bay Area – you just have to know where to look
-
Orlando Museum of Art wants to showcase more Latin American and Hispanic artists. Do you fit the bill?The Florida gallery calls for for Hispanic and Latin American artists to submit their work for an ongoing exhibition
-
The spread of Butter: the Black-owned art fair where artists see all the profitsThe Indianapolis-based art fair is known for bringing Black art to the forefront. As it ventures out of state to make its Los Angeles debut, we speak with founders Mali and Alan Bacon to find out more
-
Steve Martin wants you to visit The Frick CollectionThe actor has appeared in a video promoting New York’s newly renovated art museum
-
'What does it mean that the language of photography is invented by men?' Justine Kurland explores the feminist potential of collage'The Rose,' at the Center for Photography at Woodstock (CPW) in Kingston, New York, examines the work of over 50 artists using collage as a feminist practice
-
Inside the fantastical world of performance artist, Darrell ThornePerformance artist Darrell Thorne straddles multiple worlds, telling stories through transformation, reinvention and theatrical excess
