2013
ARTsPLACE – Annapolis Royal, NS

The works in Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One continue Kyle Beal’s longstanding interest in the perceived (his) relationship between the art object and jokes, and laughter as an aesthetic response made physical. Utilizing a variety of contemporary materials and working methods from sign making to robotics, Beal’s works all lean heavily on language (verbal and written) for their conceptual underpinnings. The title refers to the act of introducing an unfunny or bad joke, with viewers invited to leave their own jokes in the exhibition within the participatory work that shares the exhibition title. Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One like other works within the exhibition suggests that the performer and viewer are roles easily conflated, neither purely one or the other but a varying combination of both.