Golden oldies: Cordova uses old media to peer into obscurity

For Afro-Peruvian artist William Cordova, nothing embodies the forgotten times better than an old, broken vinyl record.

One of Cordova's recent sculptures, "Greatest Hits (para Micaela Bastidas, Tom Wilson y Anna Mae Aquash)," is now on display at the Nasher Museum of Art. The 13-foot tower of 3,000 stacked records is accented with pieces of broken discs, Peruvian gourds, old wrappers, a video cassette, dust, hair and pennies strewn around the wooden base.

Inspired by historical movements such as Dada and Arte Povera, Cordova created the tower to recognize those who have been overlooked in mainstream music. He wanted the piece to acknowledge past artists who added to the genre even if they had not produced a "greatest hit."

"When you think about the most important contributions in musical history, the best talent is not always found in the top 40," said Wendy Livingston, Nasher's manager of marketing and communications.

The work is part of upcoming exhibit The Record, which opens August 2010 and is organized by Trevor Schoonmaker, curator of contemporary art at the Nasher. Since the museum has already cultivated a relationship with Cordova and displayed several of his previous creations, "Greatest Hits" was especially appropriate as a preview to the exhibition, Livingston said.

"He is a young artist on the rise and an artist of color," she said. "He has a global perspective, and his work is groundbreaking. All of these things make him a really interesting artist."

The tower's numerous elements add to its complexity. The blank record covers and a VHS tape at the base suggest the presence of an informal shrine to these unknown musicians. This motif of cultural ignorance is highlighted further by items jutting out over the top of the column, just barely out of view.

Senior Catherine Stanley, student intern at the Nasher majoring in art history, says that the sculpture is unlike anything on display at the museum.