The Guggenheim (New York 2)

(New York Part 2)

The Guggenheim 

I have been in the midst of exams, revision and essays, so please excuse the tardiness of this post. I have been dying to share with you, my dear readers my truly sensational trip to the Guggenheim when I was in New York.

The way the museum is laid out is truly innovative, the highlights being the light, space and elegantly curved  lines that gives the space a calming feel and the viewer can simply meander up the floors at  ones own pace rather than feeling like cattle being herded from one room to another. 

It also seems to me to be visually  linked to the new renovated Ashmolean museum in Oxford. The light and space really gives the viewers room to breath and experience the art in a new cutting edge way.

The exhibiton that was on at the time that I was there was called Gutai: Splendid Playground. This was an art movement that I had never heard of so I was intrigued and enthralled by the exhibiton. 

(Work [Water], 1956/2011)

Gutai artworks are mixed installation, performance and site-specific environments that rose from a response to the innovative exhibitions organised by the leader Yoshihara Jiro. The first piece of art that the viewer was confronted with was a documentary film of an outdoor Gutai art exhibiton in 1956. This gave the viewers an introduction into what the Gutai was all about.

Against the backdrop of the fascist unity that was cultivated by the Japanese government during world war II, Gutai stressed the development of the self and originality not as aesthetic but as existential issues. Gutai art was as much about the process of the work as it was the finished piece. There is an energy to this art movement that really reflects how 'the people' were feeling at the time, their release from oppression and their embrace of art as a physical activity.

Shiraga Kazuo’s ‘Work II’ (1958)

The art works gave the viewer a feeling of aggression but interestingly at the same time a hint of playfulness which the artists felt when creating these bold works, it makes us think that perhaps it was almost a  therapeutic way of dealing with the suppressed culture they lived in. 

Another interesting artist that the Guggenheim was exhibiting was Tayeba Begum Lipi, one of Bangladesh's leading contemporary artists. Her installation Love Bed made in 2012 was particularly shocking.

It depicted a double bed made out of razor blades and gave reference to the double kind of political and gender specific violence. The message given by Lipi is that love can often be violent. She has made other objects solely out of razor blades not only to shock but also because through her work she is trying to understand why the notion of beauty is permanently determined by a male audience, hence the inclusion of the razor blades (a predominately male object). 

Another work of art which I really feel I have to include which is part of the Guggenheim's permanent collection is Franz Marc's The Yellow Cow 1911. This is one of my favourite paintings ever and is part of Der Blaue Reiter (Blue Rider) movement which was started by Marc and which Kandinsky later joined. In these paintings Marc developed a theory of colour and symbolism going hand in hand and had strong associations with spiritual values. 

To me looking at this painting simply lifts the heart and gives so much joy, as not only do the colours, but the subject matter which is so bold they seem almost farcical. The vivid cow appears to be floating through the landscape in a meandering almost peaceful nature that gives the viewer a sense of peace and contentment. 

Now my dear readers, a small note to finish with: What I have found recently to be frustrating about art galleries and museums is that no one seems to spend any time over art any more. I believe the average person spends about six seconds on a work and some, not even that. Another pet hate of mine which I found more prevalent in New York than London was the amount of people who simply took photos of the art works but didn't 'look'. I found this particularly shocking when looking at The Scream by Munch (talked about in my last post) that is held at the MoMA. One of the most famous paintings in the world and hardly anyone spent time on it, they simply took a photo and moved on.

I hope you have enjoyed reading some of the highlights of my trip to the Guggenheim and are left with the urge to visit yourself, as it truly is one of the most breathtaking museums in the world.

Once again it has been a pleasure,

The Raven's Eye Critic

The MoMA

New York (Part 1)

The MoMA

I have only just resurfaced from the depths of jet lag but thought I should crack on and retell my tale of adventure before the details are irretrievably lost. I was in New York to celebrate my sister's birthday, and was staying with her at her lovely apartment in between 7th & 8th avenue. I was completely blown away by New York, not only because it was amazing to spend time with my wonderful sister but also because the whole feel of the place was so relaxed and friendly that I could definitely see myself living there!
Now my dear readers, as this is mostly an arts and culture review blog I shall recount something of my experience of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) first.

I am currently writing my dissertation on Edvard Munch and, as luck would have it, there just happened to be a fabulous exhibiton on him at the MoMA at the time. 

The exhibiton Edvard Munch: The Scream (October 24, 2012–April 29, 2013) focuses primarily on The Scream (1895) (shown above) which is the most renowned of Munch's works, but not the one I believe to be the most interesting - even of the pictures included in this relatively small exhibiton.

Of the four versions of The Scream created by Munch between 1893 and 1910, this pastel-on-board from 1895 is the only one remaining in private hands: the three other versions are in the collections of museums in Norway. This version has been lent to the MoMA by a private collector. The pastel drawing really does convey Munch's mental state at the time of creation and it is said that Munch concluded early in his career that painting must go beyond naturalistic portrayal of the world and instead focus on the deeper realm of the psyche or the soul.

What I found interesting was that the walls of the gallery in which the art work was held were all painted dark grey. This I thought highlighted his work more dramatically and also added a slightly more sinister feel to the room. The fact that as the viewer entered the gallery they were confronted by a bold floor to ceiling wall in the centre of the room upon which The Scream was hung emphasized that this was the primary work of art to be viewed within the room. The other works by Munch were simply hung on the outer walls of the gallery as if to simply highlight The Scream rather than have their own merit.

What I did find rather confusing was the selection of Munch's works that the curators had decided to show along side The Scream. There seemed to be minimal correlation between them, neither having influenced The Scream nor having similar subject matter.

One of the most powerful works of art in the exhibiton I felt was Jealousy I (lithograph) made in 1896. There are various different versions of this subject which Munch constantly went back to. However I think the harsh black that dominates this art work helps the viewer to feel Munch's state of mind at the time this was created. Also the way that the figure on the left (meant to be Munch) stares boldly and helplessly out at the viewer in an almost confrontational manner makes us feel as though we are being watched and judged by this individual. This for me was a far more powerful art work than The Scream and so it slightly frustrated me that it was being exhibited as a side line to simply highlight the similarities that the curator thought this had with The Scream.

Until next time,

The Raven's Eye Critic

Bill Viola

Bill Viola

Bill Viola is a contemporary video artist whom I have recently discovered. I know my past posts have been focusing on exhibition reviews but I thought I would mix it up and share with you some artists that I am truly passionate about. I was recently introduced to Viola's work when a family friend had one of his videos installed in their flat. I did not see the video myself but was told about it so promptly studied his works and was blown away by the confrontational style of his work.

In the video above Acceptance (2008) depicts a rather shocking nude figure and throughout the video it is unclear whether this figure is female or male. It starts out as a mere blur in the background and as the camera moves closer the true emotion of the figure is conveyed.

Many of Viola's videos incorporate the fundamental four elements within them, such as fire or water, and these are more often than not depicted in black and white. The themes behind Viola's work are the fundamental human experiences such as birth, death and different aspects of the conscious mind.

Viola states that technology is part of our evolution, and that although people have an innate fear of technology it is important for artists to understand it fully and put it to positive use. Viola also says that existence itself is movement and change and this is shown in all of his video installations. He believes that the purpose of the digital medium is to model thoughts though the actions it depicts as symbols of the real world, not simply material objects.

Bill Viola's video installations can primarily be described as fierce, whether because of the elements included, the emotions conveyed or the feeling the viewer is left with once the reel is finished. 

"The wound is where the light enters you" - Rumi

I am going to New York in a few weeks and am fully prepared to immerse myself in its culture and life but most importantly, the art, for held there are a spectacular range of works from Picasso's Demoiselles d'Avignon to Edvard Munch's The Scream. 

Again it has been such a pleasure.

The Raven's Eye Critic

Tim Walker: Story Teller

Tim Walker

Story Teller

January 2013

Somerset House

From the very first photograph by Tim Walker which I saw in Vogue UK back in 2005 and which was of Lily Cole I fell in love. His photography had just so much beauty, elegance and colour that it has stayed with me and I have been an avid fan of Walker's ever since!

As i'm sure you are aware by now is that I am in love with India and this shoot took place in some of the most breathtaking, crumbled down forts I had ever seen. Now I mustn't get carried away with myself as I could discuss Tim Walker's photographs for hours: what I would say is that he is truly innovative and conveys a very real magic which seems absent in so much fashion photography where the models stand coldly, rarely interacting with one another or the camera. What Walker achieves in his photos turns fashion photography into fairy tales.

His photographs appear to hark back to a time of childhood when every new day was an adventure and new people were potential friends.

However I am here to tell you lovely people about the exhibition I went to a few weeks ago at Somerset House which is the first exhibition of Walker's work in a long time and is a collection of photographs from a variety of shoots Walker has done over the past five years.

It was a well laid out exhibition with themes for each room. What made the experience all the more special was the fact that many of the props used in the shoots were installed next to their relevant photographs.

Supported by Mulberry, 'Tim Walker: Story Teller' exhibits 175 of Walker's most whimsical and magical works from the glossy pages of some of the world's leading magazines such as British, French, American and Italian Vogue. 

What was interesting about the exhibition was that it did not just showcase the photographs that Walker is best known for (his fantastical) but portraits were also included of personalities from the likes of the cast of Monty Python to Vivienne Westwood.

Although this exhibition is now closed there is a fantastic book that goes with it Tim Walker: Story Teller printed by Thames and Hudson. This book includes all of the photographs from the exhibition as well as Tim Walker's own wanderings of the mind and also includes his thought processes shown through mood boards, which the exhibition only touched upon slightly. 

As always it has been a joy to write about this truly original photographer. Until next time...

The Raven's Eye Critic

Steve McCurry: India

Steve McCurry

India

Chris Beetle Gallery

16th January - 9th February 2013

Earlier this month I visited Chris Beetle's Gallery http://www.chrisbeetles.com/ in Ryder Street (London) to see the new exhibition by Steve McCurry called India.

McCurry is most famous for his photograph above known The Afghan Girl taken in 1984. Whilst being about India this exhibiton had a different feel to this particular photograph. The majority of the photographs featured depicted either groups or showed typical Indian landscapes.

There was one particular image which puzzled me and that was Blue City 1996 (Featured above). This photograph was so large and had been so blown up that there was a huge lack of detail. There was no depth of field to this work of art and being placed as it was in between photographs where McCurry displayed his characterful detail and had full rein only made its limitations stand out more. I was later told by Chris that this image had been commissioned by a particular fashion house for one of their campaigns and so the way the photograph ended up looking as though it had been flattened was due to their specific intentions.

I also felt the way the exhibition itself was laid out didn't allow the photographs to fully reach their potential impact. For instance, as the gallery space is not overly large it would have perhaps been better to spread the works of art out and include interlinking clear boards across the gallery that would have therefore given the illusion of more space.

My dear readers, you may feel as though I am being particularly critical of this exhibition but the reasoning behind this is that I have been some what spoilt in the past when looking at Steve McCurry's work. 

In April 2010 I had the great pleasure of going to one of the most spectacular exhibitions of all time which in fact first inspired me to want to go into the art world, and perhaps to end up in curatorship myself. 

This was during my Art History Abroad Course on my gap year when we spent a few days in the beautiful Italian city of Perugia. Here the way the gallery space was transformed was truly breathtaking!

As soon as the viewer entered the space everyone fell silent: it had the feeling of a holy and sacred place where the impact of the photographs left the viewer struck dumb. This exhibition will always stay with me and i'm afraid that is why I was somewhat critical when I entered Chris Beetle's Gallery. It is however worth mentioning that there is one very significant difference with the message being given across by both exhibitions  The glorious Perugian exhibition was presented in a much larger space and was not trying to sell the works, so the way in which it was laid out gave the viewer an all-round experience and one could end up getting lost within the wondrous world of McCurry. The Beetle Gallery on the other hand was selling the  works it exhibited and this was the purpose of the exhibiton  In whatever setting McCurry's photographs are placed in they will always leave us with an extraordinary imprint that momentarily lets us escape to the colourful, noisy, spiritual and fascinating world that is India. 

Once again it has been a pleasure

The Raven's Eye Critic

http://stevemccurry.com/

Amalia Pica: For Shower Singers

Amalia Pica

For Shower Singers

14 December 2012 - 10 February 2013

Modern Art Oxford

Modern Art Oxford is one of the largest galleries in the South East devoted to modern and contemporary art, and in December 2012 they put on an exhibition For Shower Singers by Amalia Pica. I found it to be one of the most stunning and thought provoking exhibitions I have been to in a long time.

Amalia appears to work particularly in water colours, however she does include many other mediums such as film, collage and installations.

When entering the upper gallery the first piece of work that instantly grabbed my attention was the collage piece called Strangers in a Common Land 2012 which was in part commissioned by Modern Art Oxford. This depicts a monochrome collage with the only colour being the bunting running the length of the work. When speaking with the curator after attending the exhibition I was stunned to be told how temporary the works of art exhibited were. For instance the collage shown above was made particularly for the space and, once, taken down will be destroyed.  

Another area of the exhibition that gave me much amusement depicted a cardboard stage, a soap microphone and a tacky red tape carpet. All of these are symbolic of fame and convey how fleeting it is and  how in this day and age so many people become famous for simply being famous! It is clear to see from the image above that the stage itself cannot be sat on, however I was told that in the course of the exhibition an elderly lady had a little sit down and left a pretty permanent dent in the stage! So I suppose in a way the exhibition itself is rather confusing as we are bought up "TO NEVER TOUCH/INTERACT WITH ART" and this is what I believe Amalia Pica is trying to challenge us with, this preconceived idea of what is and isn't art. 

Another theme of the exhibition was communication. For example the slide show very irritatingly named Babble, blabber, chatter, gibber, jabber, patter, prattle, rattle, yammer, yada, yada. yada 2010 consists of a series of eighty 35mm slides which are projected in a sequence that shows the artist spelling out the letters of the work's title using semaphore flags. The interesting idea behind this work as with many of Pica's other works is the irony of the attempt to communicate when there is no-one to respond. The figure is in the middle of the desert and is in fact signalling to no one. This message is repeated in many of the other works shown in For Shower Singers.

I found the exhibition a true mark of original thought and will be very interested to see where Amalia Pica's journey leads her.

The Raven's Eye Critic

Ravens Eye

I decided to start writing a blog as I am an Art History student at university and feel that I am constantly taking in everyone else's opinions other than my own. This is to change! For here are my musings and wanderings of the mind from art exhibitions I've been to, and not only that but also cultural influences such as fashion, people who particularly inspire me and perhaps some other fanciful ideas that make themselves known to me along the way.

I came up with the name The Raven's Eye since one of my favorite poems of all time happens to be The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe which goes as follows:

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. `'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door - Only this, and nothing more.' Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore - For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore - Nameless here for evermore. And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before; So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating `'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door - Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; - This it is, and nothing more,' Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer, `Sir,' said I, `or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore; But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping, And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door, That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door; - Darkness there, and nothing more. Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before; But the silence was unbroken, and the darkness gave no token, And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, `Lenore!' This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, `Lenore!' Merely this and nothing more. Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning, Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before. `Surely,' said I, `surely that is something at my window lattice; Let me see then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore - Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore; - 'Tis the wind and nothing more!' Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter, In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore. Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he; But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door - Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door - Perched, and sat, and nothing more. Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling, By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore, `Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,' I said, `art sure no craven. Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the nightly shore - Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!' Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.' Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly, Though its answer little meaning - little relevancy bore; For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door - Bird or beast above the sculptured bust above his chamber door, With such name as `Nevermore.' But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only, That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour. Nothing further then he uttered - not a feather then he fluttered - Till I scarcely more than muttered `Other friends have flown before - On the morrow he will leave me, as my hopes have flown before.' Then the bird said, `Nevermore.' Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken, `Doubtless,' said I, `what it utters is its only stock and store, Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful disaster Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore - Till the dirges of his hope that melancholy burden bore Of "Never-nevermore."' But the raven still beguiling all my sad soul into smiling, Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door; Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore - What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore Meant in croaking `Nevermore.' This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core; This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er, But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er, She shall press, ah, nevermore! Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor. `Wretch,' I cried, `thy God hath lent thee - by these angels he has sent thee Respite - respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore! Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe, and forget this lost Lenore!' Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.' `Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! - Whether tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore, Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted - On this home by horror haunted - tell me truly, I implore - Is there - is there balm in Gilead? - tell me - tell me, I implore!' Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.' `Prophet!' said I, `thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! By that Heaven that bends above us - by that God we both adore - Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn, It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels named Lenore - Clasp a rare and radiant maiden, whom the angels named Lenore?' Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.' `Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!' I shrieked upstarting - `Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore! Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken! Leave my loneliness unbroken! - quit the bust above my door! Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!' Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.' And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door; And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming, And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor; And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor Shall be lifted - nevermore!

I also felt that although Owls are seen as the wise winged wonders, they do only come out at night and that does seem to pose various problems if one is review art works! However I also feel and don't hesitate to disagree with me dear reader, that in fact there seems to be a discerningly insightful way about Ravens. So here our journey begins!!