Discarded shoes wait outside the front door; an ornamental birdbath is meant to attract birds; a trampoline calls to mind the exuberant laughter of children. A rake, wheelbarrow, and garden bed bear witness to work already done. A suet ball hangs from the ceiling, with animal heads instead of food inside its netting. Why not take a seat on the hybrid bench and enjoy the tranquility of this front-garden idyll? The audience moves through an outdoor space brought indoors as though navigating between islands. Is it part of the installation and therefore part of the front garden? And if so, who else belongs there?

In the work of artist Sophia Mainka, the front garden eludes any clear-cut classification, beginning with the materials themselves. Seductively glossy surfaces look crocheted, seeming tactile and warm, only to tip, on closer inspection, into something sticky and abject. The bead-like material comes from the construction and plumbing industries: a textile technique traditionally…