After my recent exhibition i have realised how annoying it is watching people viewing my work.
in the future i am going to avoid this by not going to my own opening nights and getting footage/photos when the place is shut.
I had a video installation- which consisted of two tv monitors facing each other. I was on one screen and vito acconci was on the other- this was a conversation scenario, so the two screens had to be viewed simultaneously- watching one person at a time kind of defied the point.
But thats what people did- stood in front of one screen for 5 minutes, then stood in front of the other screen for five minutes and then walked away. I put this down to people being so used to a certain way of viewing art. I dont know if anyone has seen the art gallery sketch on the comedy 'snuff box' but it is very much like that. I could have moved the screens closer together to make it more obvious that it was a conversation- but that would be ridiculous- instead i just learned that you have to deal with people making their own interpretations of your work- intended or not. This sounds like a very obvious thing to say, i know, its just the first non 2D piece i have exhibited =)
this has lead me to do some work which looks at how we view art- i will post more about this soon.
Having handed my dissertation in week before last i have been very excited to get stuck into some work but instead have been spending a lot of time writing up my journal. I wanted to write what i have learned through my research. The most interesting part of my dissertation was looking at new galleries- the gallery which represented contemporary art most sucessfully, for me, was the QUAD in Derby. If you get the chance you should go. It is a great space, i was especially impressed with the representaion of Bill Drummonds process based piece called '17'.
I have also been doing some actual practical work- my current piece is a video piece using footage from Vito Acconci's 'Theme Song', 1974. I have aimed to bring his audience into the same space as him- by filming a response using modern song lyrics in the same way that he does in his piece. It is interesting to see how this piece changes when it is turned into a conversation. For exhibiting this piece is shown on two monitors facing each other- me on one- him on the other.
It will be part of a group exhibition at the 'Link Gallery' at MMU Art School from Monday 2nd Feb – 6th Feb.
I will post reactions and footage of the exhibition soon.
I am currently working as a curator for a student exhibition. I decided that in order to be able to talk about the relationship between artist and curator i should experience things from both sides. I suggested to a fellow student that they losen up their ideas by taking them outside (because she didnt feel she was exploring her ideas fully) and that i would curate the exhibition. This has taken the pressure off the artist to organise the event and has benefited her work greatly.
I am finding working on the other side of things very interesting although not problem free.
I am realising a lot of the issues i have had about the art industry in the past that i have ranted about in a very studenty angsty way are really not that easy to overcome. Seperating entertainment from art and exhibitions is difficult when trying to attract a large audience. Obviously my tactics of 'pulling people in' may be excused on some level- because of the fact that nobody knows who the hell we are (yet ;] ) we have to get people in regardless of their actual interest in contemporary art. So yes… we are offering mince pies.
I now fully understand why there is so much free wine at openings.
If you cant beat them join them- were having bloody mulled wine.
All jokes aside, its going to be a brilliant exhibition and i am enjoying working with Val Kerry lots.
****EVERYONE INVITED****
Artists have to be more than creators- we have to be publicists, we have to market our work. I am creating a piece that outlines the difference in the amount of time it takes to create a piece compared to the time it takes to do everything else neccessary for it's existence. With the development in technology- a lap top is all you need to be an artist. Things can be put out there and can exist to a wider audience at the touch of a button (as the resources of this website show and as i will demonstrate when i press 'publish post'). What has to be built up around a piece of art to enable it to be viewed by todays viewer/the public? I aim to create a piece to show and to question these points. I will blog about the developing stages of this work.
