American artist T.J. WILCOX who specialises in film and video as his medium of choice has just exhibited at Gavin Brown's Enterprise on 436 West 15th Street in Chelsea, New York. Two of his short films were shown, one entitled "The Little Elephant" merges 'Barbar' and 'The Elephant Man' to tell the story of a traumatised ugly duckling who, in a charming passage of film animation, travels from the jungle to the big city. Once there he is transformed into DAVID BOWIE and, it seems clear, will live happily ever after, with the support of an elderly patroness Wendy Hiller, who has lots of money, a sly smile and likes his style. Wilcox's art form is a labour-intensive method which transforms his film into an almost physical object, similar to flickering, kinetic paintings. Each piece of film or animation, whether vintage or newly shot clips, are process-pasted together. By copying the film onto video and back again, it establishes a generational distance between the sources and the projected 16mm film feels almost like a physical object. Wilcox graduated in 1989 with a BFA from the School of Visual Art in New York and completed his MFA at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California in 1995. Most recently, his work has been featured in a solo exhibition at Gavin Brown's Enterprise in New York, the 1997 Biennial Exhibition at the Whitney, and at the 1997 Venice Biennale. Thanks, Rednik!
