Higher Ground

Higher Ground is an interdisciplinary work consisting of video, sculpture and photography commissioned by the Houston Airport System, City of Houston Civic Art Program. In the spirit of George Méliès landmark illusionistic film, “A Trip to the Moon,” the artists Hillerband+Magsamen with their children embark on an adventure to construct and fly a rocket ship to the moon by taking apart their Houston, Texas suburban home. This quirky and seemingly impossible task created out of cut up couches, duct-tape, Amazon boxes and pots and pans turns out to be not only achievable, but also believable. As the artist and their children pull apart and rummage around their home to build a spaceship, this cinematic odyssey references both the creativity and futility of the “American” experience. From backyard wrestling to big box store escapism the work creates a Beckettian theme echoing phrase 'can't go on…must go on'.