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Younger Than Jesus, the New Museum’s first edition of its “signature triennial” The Generational, brings together fifty artists from twenty-five countries all under the age of thirty-three (Christ’s alleged age at his death). The New Museum, younger than Jesus itself, seems to finally find its footing with this exhibition. While, as with any large group exhibition, there are some pieces that are stronger than others, overall, it is a nuanced and thoughtful show that seems right at home in an institution whose mission is “new art, new ideas.” In order to select the artists for the show, the curators (Lauren Cornell, Massimiliano Gioni, and Laura Hoptman) used their own social networks, requesting recommendations from curators, critics, art historians, writers, artists and others. The result of this extensive research is a catalogue of the 500+ artists who were proposed for inclusion in the exhibition (Younger Than Jesus: The Artist Directory).

The fifty artists that were ultimately chosen from this group work in all media and address a wide range of issues. However, the curators noted four common threads that seem to tie the exhibition together. One of these is a fascination with obsolete technology. This is exemplified in the work of Mark Essen, who creates video games using long-surpassed technology (the hardware looks like a bastardized “original Nintendo”). A second theme is a return to abstraction, as seen in the Black Dada (2009) paintings by Adam Pendleton, which consist of monochrome black paint with a few letters in neutral colors. In works such as AIDS-3D’s OMG Obelisk (2007), a future world is envisioned (the third theme), in this case one where technology has reached a god-like, worshipped status. The final theme, globalization, occurs in works such as Ciprian Muresan’s Choose… (2005), in which the prevalence of “Coca-Cola” and “Pepsi” is apparent as a Romanian child, in his own version of the “Pepsi Challenge,” mixes the two drinks together and happily consumes the result.

Of the fifty artists, many are noteworthy (some of whom have already been mentioned), but three artists’s work truly stands out. Cyprien Gaillard’s video Desniansky Raion (2007) combines stark visual beauty and danger with a stunning audio soundtrack provided by Koudlam, a French musician. Gaillard’s video examines the exterior order and internal turmoil of social housing projects. Peaceful shots of these projects in Serbia and Ukraine bookend scenes of destruction: a gang fight, and the demolition of a housing project. The shots of Kiev are particularly unnerving. Other than the few moving cars, there are no signs of life. The pure snow and “henge-like” arrangement of the housing project make this post-Soviet country look like a post-apocalyptic one in the midst of a nuclear winter.

Liu Chuang’s series Buying Everything On You (2006-2008) says it all in the title. The artist approached people on the street and offered to buy whatever they had on them at the time. The resulting installations are portraits of people courtesy of their possessions. All that was purchased from each individual is laid out delicately, like a cross between a dead person’s belongings and something you’d fine in an anthropologists lab. When one looks more closely at these people’s possessions, it is evident that they actually tell us very little, if anything, about the owners. They make ineffective portraits. For a generation that has often been looked at purely as consumers, it is thought-provoking that their purchases say so little about them. Chuang’s piece reveals that not all of the defining qualities placed on this generation hold water.

With his as yet untitled video installation (2007), Ryan Trecartin positions himself as the poster-child of the technology obsessed branch of the “Younger Than Jesus” generation. Trecartin’s videos show us the world through a fun house mirror that is just enough of a distortion to allow the viewer to laugh at the absurdities that are the reality of contemporary life. Trecartin makes references to popular culture (“Fetch Your As If”), contemporary technology in society (every character holds a Blackberry®), and post-9/11 travel (one character appears to have brought knives as well as a corkscrew on a plane, in addition to smoking and talking on a cell phone). While many of the other artists are looking at themselves or looking at the world around them, Trecartin looks at himself within the context of this world and celebrates its idiosyncrasies.

The New Museum uses the space extremely well, including work in the staircase between the fourth and third floors, and suspending a flat screen in the middle of an aisle way. For how much work is included in the show, it rarely feels cluttered. The curators sought to create a show of work from a particular generation, without trying to define that generation, or make every artist fit into a preconceived paradigm. However, at the same time, they wanted to create a cohesive exhibition. These two wishes are inherently in conflict. Though the curators present a wide variety of artists, one is left wondering whether this represents everything happening in this generation of artists, which based on the very existence of The Artist Directory one can confidently say that it does not. That said, in attempting an impossible task, the curators managed to create a show that is extremely well executed and shows a breadth of talented artists working with issues relevant and compelling to their generation. Superficially, looking at this generation may be different for Millenials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers. Some references, such as Essen’s “original Nintendo-esque” video game may bring up nostalgia for a Millenial’s childhood (a Baby Boomer may have this reaction to some of the “obsolete technology”). However, ultimately, the work transcends the generational tropes and is able to connect with viewers regardless of generation. And this, I believe, is what the curators of the show are trying to reveal: that despite categorizing these artists within their generation, “age ain’t nothin’ but a number,” and their work is relevant to anyone living in contemporary society.

The Generational: Younger Than Jesus @ The New Museum of Contemporary Art, 235 Bowery, New York, NY 10002. April 8 – July 5, 2009.