“SIDESHOW,” a new exhibition of work by Michael C. McMillen is now on view at the Wadsworth Antheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, CT. On view through May 3, 2015, the installation is inspired by Coney Island and serves as a contemporary art companion piece to the museum’s special exhibition “Coney Island: Visions of an American Dreamland, 1861-2008.”

“There, somewhere within the complex of worn rides and faded attractions, I recall visiting a walk-through display tunnel of life-size tableaux depicting famous murders and other social malfunctions. It was both strangely fascinating and familiar.Growing up in Santa Monica, the Ocean Park Pier held a powerful draw for me, made even more attractive because of my grandmother’s admonitions to ‘STAY AWAY!’ The carnival facade was a thin cover for the faded dreams and gross depravity that one would read about in the local tabloids. There was something about this unexpected encounter with the terrible side of human nature and the crudely sensational way it was depicted that was simultaneously riveting, repellent, and haunting. Years later as a young artist thinking about how to engage an audience, I recalled and recognized the power of the immersive environment.”
- Michael C. McMillen

In “SIDESHOW,” McMillen plans to create such a space through moving shadows, light, and wall projections that create an atmospheric setting for a collection of unusual curiosities and mysterious artifacts. Looking back at his previous 40 years as a working artist, he plans to integrate some of the objects from his 1973 UCLA MFA project, The Traveling Mystery Museum, including a fragment of the Mystery Mummy and Hannah the Fortune Telling Mouse. The alluring installations Lighthouse (Hotel New Empire) (2010) and Terminal (2014) will also be featured in the exhibition.

Learn more about Michael C. McMillen.

IMAGE: Michael C. McMillen, Lighthouse (Hotel New Empire) (detail), 2010. Mixed media with digital motion picture; 8 ½ x 11 x 12 ft. (overall). .