A deadfall is a trap made from heavy objects that have been precisely angled and balanced with sections of tree branches, with one of them serving as a trigger. When something moves this branch—which is typically loaded with bait—the object falls and crushes it. These types of traps have been most common because they are easily made from materials within close proximity.

The appearance of the deadfall trap varies depending on the materials used, but they always take the same form: an asymmetrical distribution of weight that results in a unique, yet specific division of positive and negative space. Similarly, visual artist Sterling Allen utilizes materials within close proximity to construct unique sculptural forms; although not envisioned as a violent end, his material compositions–which are often made from found objects–play with geometric logic in a way that entraps the viewer to look deeper into the intricacies of defined space.

For his site-specific installation at the Cage Match Project, Allen has reacted to the physical structure of the cage–which also resembles a type of trap–as a means to contemplate alternative ways of looking and display. Cage Match Project #5: STERLING ALLEN will open to the public on 11/11/17 and run through 1/15/18. The Cage Match Project is open to the public for 24/7 viewing.

About the Artist: Sterling Allen holds an MFA in Sculpture from the Milton Avery Graduate School of Arts at Bard College and a BFA in Studio Art from the University of Texas in Austin. He is a co-founder and co-director of Okay Mountain, an artist collective and former gallery based in Austin, Texas. As a solo artist and in collaboration with the group, he has exhibited, organized, and completed projects at venues throughout the United States and received several residencies including the Artpace International Artist-In-Residence Program in San Antonio, Texas and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art in Omaha, Nebraska. He is currently an Assistant Professor in Studio Art at Texas State University in San Marcos, TX. https://sterlingallen.com/

About the Gallery: Cage Match Project is a temporary, site-specific art-installation series in which a group of selected artists have been invited to engage a large, industrial caged-trailer. Measured at 20’x8’x7’, the weathered and rusted container resides in the exterior lot of The Museum of Human Achievement in Austin, TX where it is under constant exposure to the elements and 24-hour public viewership.www.cagematchproject.com

This project is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.