James Gilbert’s “Sledgehammer. Bullet. Bomb” pushes limits of creativity

By Megan Sullivan

Artist James Gilbert’s “Sledgehammer. Bullet. Bomb” exhibit at the Manhattan Beach Art Center proves that an important part of art exhibits is for the art to be understood by more than just the artist.
“Sledgehammer. Bullet. Bomb” pushes the limits of creativity by utilizing common materials to create abstract three-dimensional pieces. Despite the artist’s original idea of creating work to demonstrate the destruction of culture, the pieces are bland, seem unfinished and are hard to understand.
The exhibit consists of 9 sculptures, two site-specific works, and a video by Gilbert. The artist utilizes materials such as canvas, marble, and wood to create the three-dimensional pieces. All of the pieces in this exhibit address the issue of the destruction of culturally significant objects and architecture.
A downfall of the exhibit is that each sculpture was made from the same few materials. The materials are positioned in various configurations that do not look different enough from one another to catch the eye. There did not seem to be any constructive method to guide the production of each sculpture, which made them look messy and amateur.
Similarly, the only colors used in the artwork were pink, purple, white and the tan from the wood, which further contributed to the blandness of the work. At first glance, the exhibit looked enticing due to the vibrant pink of the sand barricades. However every sculpture looked extremely similar, so they seemed to all blend into one leaving the viewer unsatisfied.
Additionally, the execution of the artwork was poor and all of the sculptures appeared to be unfinished. The lack of color and the haphazardly placed pieces of wood looked rushed and tacky, making the entire exhibit look like a work in progress.
Another flaw of the exibit is its the fact that part of the gallery’s wall was carved out for two of the pieces, but the cut-out sections were left on the ground as part of the piece. This strange structure made the exhibit look neglected and trashed, lowering the overall quality of the work.
Furthermore, the exhibit only showcased 9 pieces which left a lot of empty space on the walls that were larger than the actual sculptures. Most of the pieces could be viewed from the front entrance so the exhibit was not attention grabbing. It was also organized by color so it was easy to tell what each sculpture was going to look like which added to the exhibits repetitive nature.
Gilbert’s purpose of the exhibit, as written on the first wall of the gallery, was to bring awareness to human destruction, but his message was lost in the actual construction of the pieces. Instead of proving his point, the sculptures made his intentions seem confusing and unclear because the artwork was so vague and minimal, and Gilbert failed to communicate his message clearly.
Overall, the “Sledgehammer. Bullet. Bomb,” exhibit was underwhelming and frankly a waste of time with works that all look the same. All of the pieces were confusing, messy, and appeared to be unfinished, making it difficult for Gilbert’s deeper message to come across.
The “Sledgehammer. Bullet. Bomb” exhibit began on Nov. 19 and will continue at the Manhattan Beach Art Center until Jan. 9.