Catherine Wagner

Blue Reverie

2025

My work has long observed the philosophical and material qualities of the color blue. Extending this line of inquiry into the spatial context of 500 Capp Street, the David Ireland House, Blue Reverie, forges linkages and lineages between the evocative, introspective nature of the color blue, its symbolism in history and music, and the environmental archive of the home. Here, the visuality of blue becomes an invitation, positioning itself as a channel to observe David Ireland’s legacy in a newly-imagined environment.

In the installation, life-sized photographs of historic light bulbs coalesce in modern, sculptural forms, while blue filters positioned on windows become lenses into the urban landscape, creating dual visions of translucency and opacity. These forms are met by wall drawings constructed with painter’s tape that map abstract drawings in-situ, performing spatial interventions. 

Having first met while sharing a gallery for the exhibition Museum Pieces: Bay Area Artists Consider the de Young, David Ireland and I have engaged in conversation in relation to conceptual thinking and making, the residue of which is now rendered immersively and thematically in this exhibition to activate hybridized experiences within the historic space.

BLUE REVERIE: SOLO EXHIBITION AND ARTIST RESIDENCY AT 500 CAPP STREET

Invited to be the artist-in-residence at 500 Capp Street, as funded by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and Teiger Foundation, the Blue Reverie exhibition proposes an immersive architectural takeover of the David Ireland House, evoking discourse between myself and David Ireland through the material, experiential, and curatorial excavation of the space. Pulling extensively from the Paule Anglim Archive Room, the exhibition proposes a synthesis of David Ireland’s work and my broader investigation of blue through the making of sculptural objects and photographs, along with curatorial engagement with the archive. The opening reception of the exhibition was accompanied by a choreographed waltz performance. 

The exhibition catalog, which documents and extends the iterative nature of the show, is supported by the Art Bae Award and includes texts by Lian Ladia and Glen Helfand. Catalogs are now available at 500 Capp Street.

Catherine Wagner: Blue Reverie