Tinged with the Warmth of Dusty Americana

“Karper’s show… is an engaging exploration of his family’s story. Tied to the history of place and childhood memory, to adopted characters and adopted religions, the show mines the Super-8 aesthetic of 70s American childhood- the crude plywood set and cheap wigs bringing the audience along with the rambling narrative. Karper’s musical skills and commitment to his storytelling are clear, and the anecdotes are comforting and familiar, tinged with the warmth of dusty Americana. Home videos and second hand stories are presented alongside tales of frontier living from the 1800s, read by the artist’s extended family in voiceover. Voices in absentia, alluding to the way in which place and history shapes our later lives. Action figures and kitchen utensils become family puppets, fleshed out to become believable ciphers for the arguments, embarrassments and the closeness of parents, siblings and partners. In the story of his sister’s conversion to Islam, Karper manages to show something of the mystery of religion to the unbeliever, the incomprehension and the instinctive resistance.”

— Lewis Church, Exeunt