British artist Ryan Gander does the spread of contemporary art polysemy through objects, installations, paintings, photography and video. All is brought under the rubric of "conceptual" art, for which the catalog of "These wings aren't for flying" at The National Museum of Art, Osaka, names him the new "standard-bearer."
To emphasize his creativity, the exhibition is prefaced with a fawning BBC documentary about the artist. Every time Gander appears in the film, little animated stars circle his head in what is referred to as a "mind whirlwind." He is portrayed constantly envisaging exciting new ideas while conjuring the magical innocence of childhood.
While the exhibition catalog calls Gander's pieces and processes "unique," it is worth considering that this is a "made for Japan" tweaked version of his "Make Every Show Like it's Your Last" exhibition that toured internationally in 2013-16. Characterizing Gander's works and ideas as "recycled," or even "up-cycled," given that he confers additional values, is perhaps more apt. Indeed he conceives of himself as a modern-day Womble from Wimbledon Common, making good uses of the things that he finds.