facsimile

exhibition by Epiphany Knedler + Tim Rickett

“To be without a story is to be lost in the vastness of a world.” – Rebecca Solnit

Nothing is original, it all comes from something. As time passes, memories and truth start to blur, like a game of telephone, becoming idealized or artificial versions of what once was. Copies are rarely perfect, hinting at their unoriginality through seam lines, offsets, tears, and smudges, becoming more artificial over time. facsimile explores this phenomenon through the resilience of Midwest notions and ephemera. The Midwest is romanticized with a timelessness of the frontier. The mythology is rooted in legends of individualism, persistence, and historical conquests. Midwest mythology is a tangled labyrinth of rural complexities. From the rugged cowboys traversing the land to the persistent spirit of the pioneers and the consistent exploitation of the land, the region is ripe with discrepancies. These ideals are a reflection of ourselves, both who we were and who we have become as a society. Using found objects, photographs, and ephemera, facsimile plays with what has survived and what can be reproduced, copied, and made into something new. These reconstructions create connections and stories, yet accentuating their flaws and disparities.

Indoor art exhibit with a white statue of a person in a cowboy hat pointing to the sides, a cactus-shaped sculpture, and a wall with framed art and photographs. The floor is green artificial turf and the space features exposed wood beams and black pe
Interior view of a store display with framed photos on a perforated metal wall, wooden panels, and a sign that says 'Thank You for Shopping'.
An indoor art exhibit displays a wooden structure with orange text saying "WE BUY MY VIEWS" on a white background frame.
Wooden indoor gallery with framed black-and-white photographs, green carpet, and staircase reflected in glass window.
Wooden sculpture of children dressed as cowboys and cowgirls standing on a multi-leveled blue shelf, with colorful letters spelling 'FAMILY' in between.
Display of various pictures and objects on a perforated black board. The images include historic towns, a scene with children and an adult, and a circular design with the words 'Thank You for Shopping' in pink. Some images are framed with wood and ot
Display of various wooden art pieces with circular cutout windows showing different scenes and textures, arranged on a board with a perforated background and some dried plant decoration.
A wooden and metal display wall showing various landscape and art photographs, small sculptures, and decorative items in an indoor art or craft store.
Display of four miniature green soldiers with pea shooters, each on a wooden pedestal with labeled captions, set on a grass patch against a wooden panel background with circular holes.
A white sculpture of a cowboy holding a gun and a lasso, wearing a hat and bandana, situated indoors with rooms and walls visible in the background.
View from inside a building looking out through large windows onto a city street with trees and a historic stone building. Inside, there is a sculpture of a person, a cardboard box, and blurred fingers or hands in the foreground.
Close-up of a golden statue of a man with an anxious or pained expression, set near a window with blurred green trees outside.
Art gallery with framed photographs on a wall, sculptures including a running figure, a cactus, and a wire chair, with large windows showing a city street outside.
Close-up of a green cactus with many sharp, long, brownish spines, and a wooden stick inserted into it near the center.
A close-up of a colorful illustration on a wooden surface, featuring a scenic landscape with a bridge and trees, with pink text and drawings overlaid and a label that reads 'Public School' at the bottom.
Close-up of a miniature figure of a person in a yellow outfit, placed inside a hollow, wood-textured structure with a circular opening.
Close-up of a wooden plaque or sign with a photo collage and the partial text 'THE VIEW FROM HERE' on it, placed on a surface with circular holes or spots.
Close-up of a corkboard surface with a wooden spiral puzzle and a small cluster of artificial green grass in the bottom left corner.
A cutout of a squirrel made from a map showing roads and locations, placed against a cloudy sky background.
A piece of oriented strand board with four circular holes placed vertically, set against a background of a brown perforated metal sheet.
A decorative box with a cowboy scene painting and an antique toy revolver placed on a wooden surface with circular hole pattern background.
A wooden target with concentric circles and a black square in the center, placed in front of a circular hole in a wood surface, reflecting an outdoor scene.
A close-up of a product package featuring a black-and-white photo of soldiers with rifles in a desert landscape, set against a background resembling a wooden or cork texture.
A vintage photo of two women dressed in early 20th-century clothing, seen through a circular cutout in a wooden board. The wooden board has a rough, patchwork appearance. The background is a metal surface with circular holes.
Wooden display case with two circular cutouts featuring scenic photographs, one showing a snowy landscape and the other a mountain scene with a horse-drawn carriage.
A close-up view of a vintage-style wooden speaker grille with a round cutout, showing a colorful image of motocross racers through the grille slats. The background features a wooden surface with circular holes.
A wooden board with four circular cutouts, each containing a miniature soldier figurine painted blue and posed in various military stances.
A woodworking template with two circular cutouts over a piece of particle board, with markings and an instruction to plummet the tool, set on a workbench with peg holes.
Close-up of a cardboard box with a circular hole and blue paint on the edge, placed on a perforated wooden surface.
A wooden display with a small tree branch arrangement and a printed information card, placed against a plain white wall.
A wooden box with a dried plant inside, on which a label reads "Name: Tumbleweed, Date: July 20, 2026, Time: 6:36 PM CST, Location: Menards, Aberdeen SD, 57401." The background is a plain white wall.
A person sitting on a wooden platform on a mountain top with train tracks in front, mountains in the background, and a cloudy sky overhead.
A young girl with blonde hair in a ponytail and wearing a striped pink and purple dress with beads, standing outdoors next to a field of tall corn plants.
Black and white photo of two men standing outdoors. The man on the left is wearing a cap, glasses, and a jacket, holding a cane. The man on the right has curly hair, a mustache, and is dressed in a jacket over a shirt, holding a walking stick. The ba
Black and white photograph of a desert scene with a tall saguaro cactus and a person walking nearby, wearing a hat and striped shirt.
Black and white photo of a man in a field of tall, dried corn stalks, holding corn cobs in his hands.
Two men standing outdoors, one wearing sunglasses and a cap, raising his hand, and a woman in a patterned dress. The background shows a clear sky and some greenery.
White sculpture of a man in a dynamic pose, holding his chest and one arm extended behind, standing on pinkish steps with artificial grass around base.
Display wall with various framed artworks, including landscape photos, small sculptures, and wooden blocks on a metal grid background.
Close-up of a decorative wall hanging with embroidered text in green, against a brown, honeycomb-patterned background. Part of the text reads "You have died of...".
A wooden board with colorful painted lines and cutout holes, one of which contains a green plastic bottle with a silver cap and some greenery inside, and the other displaying a black and yellow patterned cowboy boot.
Round mirror reflecting a mountain landscape and people standing on a grassy field, framed by a rustic wooden wall.
A close-up of a wooden photo frame with a circular cutout in the center, showing a vintage black-and-white photo of people, and a smaller color photo of a mountain landscape, all set on a textured, light-colored wooden surface.
A desert landscape with hills and sparse vegetation under a clear sky, with vertical strips of an image of a person in an orange outfit holding an umbrella placed over the landscape.
Framed landscape artwork of a moose in a forested lake scene with a distant house and an overcast sky, set within a wooden frame on a white wall, a blue sign with red legs reading 'Your Advice?' is in the foreground.
An indoor space featuring green artificial turf flooring, a cactus-shaped lounge chair with spikes, a white figurine of a cowboy or rancher with a hat and boots, wooden and metal decor elements, and artwork on the walls.