The exhibition’s curatorial point of departure is the disputed etymology of the terms OK and okay. Employed universally, both signify approval and assent or, when describing a quality, acceptability. The question of their origin, however, has sparked endless debates and inspired book-length treatises. Suggesting that issues of translation can challenge standard assumptions, the artists in OK / OKAY make artworks that stand out in a pragmatic world that tends to value clarity and brevity. Curated by Marc-Olivier Wahler, Artistic Director at S I, the shows explore the myriad ways in which art is no longer defined by position or place―instead gliding over the visible and exposing the limitless strata comprising its structure. Wahler proposes that this interplay triggers a slippage in interpretations as well as constant oscillations between different languages. It is in this unstable field, he suggests, that contemporary art finds its meaning: not as a cultural domain in search of aesthetic definitions, but rather a true dynamic.

OK / OKAY is made possible in part with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), a State agency; and with support from the Abby Weed Grey Trust; Pro Helvetia; Étant Donnés, the French-American Fund for Contemporary Art; Bundeskanzleramt Österreich Kunstsektion; Consulate General of Sweden, New York; the Danish Arts Council; Fundação Luso-Americano Para o Desenvolvimento; Cultural Services of the French Embassy; and IASPIS.