Just Do It

A Collaboration: What's Mine Is Yours

by Rachel Whitkin

Opening reception Fri., Nov. 7, 6 p.m., runs through Jan. 3, 2009, Basekamp, 723 Chestnut St., second floor, 215-206-8176, basekamp.com

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It's been decades since they were in kindergarten, but the artists involved in "What's Mine Is Yours" still dig the buddy system. In this collaborative effort, Rey Akdogan, Kabir Carter, the Mercury Twins, Bjorn Kjelltoft, Shana Moulton and vydavy sindikat (all hailing from New York by way of three different continents) come together for an exploration of artistic alliances.

Within the six installations, the lines of authorship and participant are blurred. There is no clear centerpiece of this show. Instead, each group's very different artwork stands next to another with only a thin string of visible connection. On one end of the gallery, a video titled Public Gathering Project is projected against an entire wall. It's a lengthy shot of an eclectic group of people assembling outside; the camera sometimes remaining out of focus for large periods of time. At the far end of the room, the largest of the show's pieces, Cloud City, is an entire community of structures and models, including a miniature library and an unfinished brick town hall. Around them are giant puffy opaque clouds, gathered and inviting. One is big enough to fit several people inside, which the artists encourage.

To fully appreciate this collaboration, stop by the First Friday opening reception to catch performances by the Mercury Twins and Kabir Carter, whose piece, Overexcited Recaptures, uses sound-based art generated by exhibition viewers.