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The House of the Future: An installation by David HammonsWritten by Arden Sherman

Located on the corner of America and Reid Streets in downtown Charleston, The House

of the Future is a project initiated by artist David Hammons for the 1991 Spoleto Festival USA’s 15th anniversary exhibition, Charleston

in the United States to use a whole city as its venue. It’s hard to question curator Mary Jane Jacob’s fascination with the city of Charleston, as the rich economic, social, and cultural history shaped the way the nineteen participating artists (among them Christian Boltanski, Chris Burden, Antony Gormley, Ann Hamilton, David Hammons, Joyce Scott, Cindy Sherman, and Lorna Simpson) approached their individual projects. Working in a variety of locations throughout the city, each artists’ installation could be found or in some cases, stumbled upon, as one wandered throughout the Holy City during the

Places with a Past received international acclaim and is considered one of the most important exhibition projects in contemporary art history.

Choosing as his site two vacant lots in the predominantly African-American neighbor-hood in the city’s East side, artist David Hammons collaborated with the residents to build The House of the Future. Hammons, an artist known for his site-responsive work with issues of race and class, sought to bring attention to the otherwise “tourist-less” region of the city. Hammons spent months in the neighborhood engaging the public as active participants and the critical voices of his project. Inspired by the vernacular of the Charleston “Skinny House,” Hammons and local contractor Albert Alston built this six-foot wide, two-story structure as a pointed gesture to the ubiquitous architecture of the historic city. Situated diagonally on the corner lot, The House of the Future represents a community where corner stores, corner churches, and corner gathering spots are central parts of life. Created using a patchwork of varying architectural styles seen on Charleston homes, small placards label these styles and the house thus functions as a learning tool for the neighborhood youth. On the side of the house, inscribed in bold, black letters, Hammons addresses the black stereotype through a quote by the African-American author Ishmael Reed, “The Afro-American has become heir to the myth that it is better to be poor than rich, lower class than middle or upper, easy going rather than industrious, extravagant rather than thrifty, and athletic rather than academic.” The interior of the house also functions as an active resource, serving as studio to local painter, Larry Jackson, whose portraits of neighborhood homes, convenience stores, and vacant lots reinstate Hammons’ interest in site and place. As a community staple for over two decades, The House of the Future has become a symbol of collective solidar-ity for the East side neighborhood, demonstrating the positive impact of site-responsive artwork. The house is now maintained by the City of Charleston.

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