99 Problems

Works by Breanne Schwarz

TranSystem Gallery

On view April 7 - 29, 2023

Artist Statement

As one enters the gallery, a large sign proclaims 99 Problems. The rest of the verse most of us finish in our heads. The viewer doesn’t have to know the song to understand the basic premise of the show, that hunting, trapping, catching- fishing- is a universal metaphor for dating and mating. A giant man’s head confronts a giant fishing lure with the body of a woman. The visual puns are endless- “get your hooks in him,” “she’s a good catch,” “she looks alluring,” “angling for a man,” even a modern dating app is titled “Plenty of Fish”… As the viewer walks around the giant head, they notice in the back of his mind a locked door. A porthole allows viewers to get a glimpse inside, are there really 99 lures in there? Are they his present options, or his past trophies? Who is holding the poles? Who is the hunter, and who is the prey? So many questions to “ponder.” The half smirk on his face doesn’t tell much, but we can see he isn’t biting. He has 99 problems, but a fish ain’t one.