The idea of undermining the authority of one or another established system has been the driving force of every great revolution, not only in the political sense, but also in all the aspects of life. Museums, galleries and other contemporary exhibition spaces have pretty much religiously adopted the “necessity of alienation” in terms of emphasizing the work of art through the form of ‘white cube’.1 From this perspective, the ‘white cube’ might seem as a dull, yet practical and successful approach, which is hard to reinvent. There are numerous ways of displaying art, mostly depending on its form and message, however, being adaptable, ‘white cube’ has become a starting point in the minds of the art-related majority, ironically metaphoric to a ‘blank canvas’, therefore – fairly boring. The masterminds behind the reinvention of the contemporary art scene are successfully overthrowing the regime of the basic background for the arts, despite what is proven to be scientifically easier attractive for the eye of the viewer.
Whitney B. Birkett points out in his study “the white cube erects a psychological barrier between the artworks and their viewers,” suggesting that it dictates the rules for the behavior that make the spectator unconsciously feel distant.2 This body of work will analyse the alternative approach to the exhibitionism, through the example of the curatorial practice of Hans-Ulrich Obrist’s (further referred to as HUO) “do it”. The case has engaged international public
Art galleries are essential to the art world, however, is not the only source for audiences to view art. To begin with, art and artwork is defined as the application of human skill, creativity and imagination. Taking this into consideration, individuals need to examine the nature and purpose of art galleries as a facility to collaborate, organize and display a collection of artworks. As art however, is any expression of human creativity, its presence is not bound to art galleries and is evidently present in the world around us be it in photographs, the internet or even in graffiti.
Lovett, my art history professor, a true inspiration, opened my eyes to a whole new world of rich ancient history, culture, and expression. From the beginning of time, art was utilized as a medium to tell a story, and ever since, society has turned to different medias of art- sculpture, print, conceptual performance, installations, drawings, oil on canvas, and paintings- to reflect on the current situation and express themselves. For instance, a chaotic era of war reflected in Weary Herakles, a bronze Greek Late Classical sculpture (Peloponnesian wars), the politically rebellious bravado evident in Goya’s Third of May, Romantic prints, or in Delacroix’s Lady Liberty the People, and even the religious power struggle between the Protestants and Catholics, apparent in the exuberance of Giacomo de la Porta’s Il Gesu, a Baroque Catholic church, or in Lucas Cranach’s Allegory of Law and Grace, a Northern Renaissance metal print. My greatest accomplishment in this class was designing an art exhibition featuring works from ancient to modern times, all linked by one common theme, Rebels in the History of Art. The gallery contained revolutionary works such as Giotto’s Arena Chapel, Akhenaton, Nefertiti, and Three Daughters, Manet’s Olympia, Duchamp’s Fountain, Monet’s Saint Lazare Station , Kandisky’s Improvisation 28, and other groundbreaking works. Moreover, the story behind each artwork has motivated me to further explore the art world in college as I intend to not only pursue
In the contemplation of art, or rather the conceptually intangible definition it currently possess, it is imperative to be mindful that “art” has been utilized as a promotional device, ceremonial item, aesthetically purposed article or perhaps none of these or all. It is because of this vague term that Carolyn Dean, in her text, “The Trouble with (The Term) Art”, makes a case for the consequences of applying the term “art” in societies that lacked such a notion which also accounts for the Western-centric lens the field intrinsically utilizes when viewing non-Western art. The claim is deftly supported by the utilization of expert accounts in the subject, alternative perspectives for what is considered the current norm, and self-examining questions,
I have had a passion for art since childhood. Over the past three years i have sought to use this enthusiasm to good effect. I focused on discovering new talent and learning about the process of creation and also the curating of exhibitions. This lead to me creating a pop up exhibition for students at Central Saint Martins in a vacant space on the Portland estate in
Throughout human history people used to capture the reality of their time, express their feelings and share their impressions by copying both literally or figurative the mundane. The so-called artists have had different impacts in society all along the centuries. Only a few are currently taught in school, although the reverberation of their work is still impregnated in XXI Century. Nowadays, the term ‘artist’ can be used in reference of painters, sculptors, writers, singers, choreographers and other professions whose production are considered valuable culturally speaking. One of the main problems is that their work produce such a magnificent impact on the audience the artist is set aside and usually forgotten as a person, so they feel their rights to be violated.
When visiting an exhibition of art work by artists was organized by Winston Salem State University at the Diggs Gallery. When I reached, the Art Gallery, it packed with students of the university. Clusters of people were inflowing the exhibition halls, their faces were pleased with joy. On the walls, pencil drawings and Jet Magazines were up for presentation. Most of them replicate daily activities and some of them brought us into a world of imagination of how life was in the past. As I sauntered through the exhibition halls, I heard the voice of a public speaker who was telling the guests about the artists and their works. The exhibition offered me precious minutes of moderation and enriched my mind. It brought me back into my pleased and peaceful past.
In this case, it revealing the process where the audience as co-producers of the work itself. (Yerebakan, 2016) This important intent of the artwork is clearly not an object but a process, what is important to conserve here, for the future display of the work, is the participative intent of the work, in which case, then the very nature of what is documented about exhibitions becomes particularly important. (The People Speak 2012) (Graham, 2013)
The successful exhibit of H.2.N.Y engages in a spirited interplay of framed geometries, counterbalanced by the unrestricted, free-form illustrations which spiral around the walls of the John Kaldor Family Collection gallery space. The collection is renowned for its in-depth portrayal of some of the most influential artists of the twentieth and twenty-first century, including Michael Landy.[7] Conceived as an assembly of solo shows, each individual exhibit contributes to a perpetuating dialogue between a diverse range of expressive forms in a cross-section of contemporary attitudes towards artmaking. For this particular installation, Landy digitally tore apart his charcoal drawing Machine to Destroy the Tinguely Museum 2 (2010), a process he described as “cannibalizing [his] own work”.[9] Consequently, he enlarged it to create the fragmented constituents of a large-scale drawing which envelopes and pirouettes throughout the exhibition space, linking together a selection of his own works in the immediate area. Counterbalancing the composition of interior architecture is H.2.N.Y, a drawing seated compliantly within a set frame. This spatial dichotomy plays a fundamental role in the audience’s experience of the artwork, catering to both ends of the heuristic spectrum and pays homage to the intrinsic correlation
Exit Through the Gift Shop is critical of how our culture values and judges artwork because of the degree to which expectations and others’ beliefs manipulate our interpretations of reality. The documentary demonstrates this phenomenon concerning art, but it also applies to all subjective experiences. Through Thierry’s opening gallery Life is Beautiful, Exit Through the Gift Shop shows how expectations and conformity manipulate our experiences.
Take me (I’m Yours) aims to create a democratic space for all visitors to take ownership of artworks, and curate their personal art collections, by subverting typical museum practices. Visitors constantly transform the landscape of the galleries, bit by bit, through direct engagement, eventually the exhibition will disappear entirely. (Museum, 2016a) “Take Me (I’m Yours)” is an “extremely radical exhibition that really
In her speech “How art gives shape to cultural change” (2009) Thelma Gordon, a curator of art for Studio Museum in Harlem and the Whitney Museum, provides insight into how curators, art, artist and museums are catalyst for culture and change. Her speech guides viewer through her exhibitions and events in history that resulted in the rewriting of history and personal growth. She studied art and artist at a time when museums included fewer people of color and is an advocate for cross-culture dialogues, creativity, innovation, and defining culture through exhibitions. She believes in using art and the museums to change the way people think about themselves and culture and realizes the effect art has on people internationally and in a community.
A display of public art is not a random act of expression encapsulated across a large canvas overnight but a formulated piece of culture for society to witness and experience. Each piece we have seen this semester has embodied the time and effort it takes to not only create a piece of art worth seeing but giving it a story and meaning more powerful than the piece itself. These pieces have given its audience a glimpse into the known, what the cameras and media neglect. Pieces like the To Protect and Serve, Vietnam Memorial, and Bus Poster all go deeper than the surface to deliver a compelling message that outlines a serious issue.
Since the beginning of art, typical mediums have consisted of oil paints, marble, pastels, and charcoals. As time has progressed, and aesthetics have changed, so has the extensive list of mediums found in art. One medium in particular, known as the use of “found objects” has become increasingly more popular since the days of the Renaissance. Found object art can be as straightforward as Marcel Duchamp’s “Fountain,” which is a urinal fountain that is simply orientated sideways and signed; this, bordering the line between art and an object from everyday life, brings forth many questions and lots of public controversy. Art has always caused this same controversy, but one main argument frequently surrounding found objects is the extent unto which the piece must be abstracted or reincorporated in order to be considered “art.”
The field of art history, like any discipline, is a wide and varied area of study. There are seemingly thousands of ways to interpret works of art and their places in history. Each has their own pros and cons and can greatly help to understand art and art-objects. In this semester’s Introduction to Art History course, we learned three different approaches art historians take when interpreting works of art: an object-oriented view, an artist-centered view, and an approach through medium. These approaches generally fall within one of two categories. The approaches through object and medium focus on readily apparent cues and symbols in the art object being studied. These approaches rely less on a study of history and more on visual evidence. The
Positioned alongside Central Park within the heart of New York City, The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the largest and most influential art museums in the world. The Met houses an extensive collection of curated works that spans throughout various time periods and different cultures. The context of museums, especially one as influential as the Met, inherently predisposes its visitors to a set of understandings that subtly influence how they interpret and ultimately construct meanings about each individual object within a museum. By analyzing two separate works on exhibit at the Met, I will pose the argument that museums offer a unique expression of a world view that is dictated through every element of its construction.