The metal party

About this book

Josiah McElheny's The Metal Party is a re-creation of a party organized in 1929 by students of the Bauhaus in Dessau, Germany. Taking the original "Party" as a point of departure, McElheny (b.1966, Boston, MA) produced a hyper-reflective environment of metallic surfaces complete with mirrored and clear glass spheres that alternated on the ceiling above an aluminum floor. Each viewer, upon entry to The Metal Party is encouraged to see themselves as part of this installation and requested to put on a silver Mylar costume, specially designed by McElheny. Viewers also are encouraged to document their experience with a Polaroid self portrait, many of which are also incorporated into the installation. A sound composition produced by electronic media artists Beth Coleman and Howard Goldkrand of Soundlab Cultural Alchemy fill The Metal Party with an infusion of period jazz music, Bauhaus-inspired experimental instrumentation and contemporary dance rhythms.