Duke RileySee you at the finish line

Socio-political expression in the arts has many practitioners. Duke Riley, with his sharp-edged current proposal, is among them. Riley exercises both local and global ways of seeing, and touches on historical and economic issues, in particular the US embargo of Cuba—in regards to which the artist presents, live, some of the "subjects" who participated in it, namely carrier pigeons. This is a highly elaborate solo exhibition by Riley at Magnan Metz Gallery, featuring the work in reference, Trading with the Enemy, alongside others such as The Rematch.
Trading with the Enemy consists of a series of exchanges conducted using carrier pigeons, the protagonists both of the service for which they were trained and a means of transportation for smuggled goods. The artist emphasizes his use of reclaimed materials off the island of Key West for the construction of his pigeon loft inside the gallery, as well as in other works. The relationship between land and sea in both points serviced by the pigeons is expressed in the three works built using tessellated snails, with their respective titles treated in the same technique: to have, forget me not when far away, & have not. The relationship between the two geographic areas is also underscored through the use of color. Framed in groups, the salvaged harnesses of some of the pigeons are also on display in the main gallery, as are a series of documentary videos and the small transportation tubes.
The Rematch reiterates Riley's focus on social issues and matters of education and cultural exchange. The dialog between US and Chinese societies is housed in an interactive cavern. In the interest of fairness, Rile calls for a "rematch", with the objective of changing the results of the interaction… a rather opportune global issue. The artist expresses this by means of very elaborate masks and a zodiac, all produced in collaboration with the local population along the canals of Zhujiajiao, in China. The series is dominated by documentary values, connecting with Riley's own words: "…one mythical day… an artistic creation will be nothing but a brief moment… or a divine absurd between two shores". Under the general title of See you at the Finish Line, Riley invites his audience to understand that this exhibition is about a variety of competitions.