Tuesday, September 6, 2011
The Twofolded Entity
GOMA’s most recent exhibition displays the work of two artists - Bill Viola and Chris Drury - which focuses on the intersections between life and nature, as well as the concept of dualism and the twofoldedness of various entities. Through diverse personal aesthetics, Viola and Drury accentuate the emergence and cycle of life, natural processes and the concept of opposites. Each artist conveys meaning through their unique use of media; Viola utilising the media of contemporary film and Drury exploiting his work through the use of raw materials and photography. In order to understand the physicality of human life and similar processes in nature, we must also understand their opposites, whether it be inner and outer, light and dark or loud and quiet etc. This uncovers Viola and Drury’s level-minded approach to their focus, and the way in which they take the entire body of each concept into consideration, rather than a one-dimensional interpretation.
Bill Viola is a contemporary film artist who works within a psychological and spiritual context, examining the cycle of life, consciousness, spirituality and emotion. His visual language can be recognised by dark backdrops, with vast depth, and a range of colour schemes, from black and white to contrasted tones of reds and blues. His work also incorporates the natural elements, such as fire and water, reinforcing the idea of contraries within his work. Viola’s work is suitable for this exhibition as it explores the dualism of nature, spirituality and human life, such as the notions of stressed and calm, or light and dark. The fact that his work is captured through the lense of a digital camera is relevant to the other works displayed in GOMA, as digital media is an influential aspect of modern society and contemporary art. As apparent in “The Crossing”, Viola highlights the spiritual or religious opposing concepts of heaven and hell, or simply the ‘hot and cold’ of human existence. This meaning is conveyed through Viola’s use of the elements fire and water; fire representing passion and aggravation, and water representing relaxation and balance. This work is pertinent to ‘the Twofolded Entity’ as it presents stark contrasts of hot/cold, light/dark, red/blue and bottom/top. The man in the film is walking towards the camera, which is confronting and creates an atmosphere of anticipation. The film is edited in ultra slow motion, allowing the viewer to contemplate the meaning of the work, furthering the psychological context of this piece. The man is walking forward, which is representative of the coming forth, or emergence of self. As the man in the shot is slowly covered from head to toe with water, the film remains in slow motion and the viewer is able to capture exactly how the water encompasses the man’s body, revealing the notion that he is being enriched and ‘drenched’ in wholeness and purity. The water, indicating tranquillity and balance, produces positive connotations, as it appears to be a type of protection blanket over the man. The splash of water begins as a trickle, and slowly becomes a bucketing shower, reflecting an increase in the depth of consciousness. Finally, the meaning of Viola’s work is emphasised through his choice of media – film - which allows his viewers to gain an intimate interpretation of his works, as it captures the movement within the frame. This movement is enhanced through Viola’s use of ultra slow motion, allowing the viewer to gain a deep understanding of the piece and examine each minuscule aspect of it, down to the splash of one drop of water. Viola’s work fits seamlessly within the focus of this exhibition, as it reveals both faces of every entity or object that he works with. Viola believes that in order to understand anything, it is essential that you recognise its opposite. This simple notion is a useful tool for everyday living, as it encourages an open mind and the acceptance of all dimensions of any situation.
Chris Drury – working within an environmental, spiritual and psychological context – explores the relationships between humans and nature, as well as systems in the human body in relation to science and medicine, whilst drawing from religious traditions such as Buddhism and Christianity. Meshing with the focus of this exhibition, Drury’s work highlights the so-called ‘opposites’ related to these concepts, such as the inner and outer, and the microcosmic and macrocosmic. Drury’s personal aesthetic is recognised by predominantly unbalanced compositions of natural sculptures, earthy colour schemes and a variety of shapes, sizes and materials. This contributes to the meaning of his work as it reinforces the complexity, yet naturalness of systems within nature and the human body. The media Drury works with – raw materials such as sticks, stones, dirt, shells, plants etc – are directly linked to the meaning behind his work, of nature and the systems within it. The medium he works within is mostly site-specific installations, drawings and prints, and he photographs each of his ephemeral installations. The photography of his work allows his viewers to view his works as they appeared in their completed state, permitting the viewers to virtually ‘feel’ the textures of the raw materials. Photography is an influential facet of contemporary art and it allows Drury’s work to be appreciated by a vast audience. The uniqueness of Drury’s work lies within his notion of not possessing one particular style, or favouring one material over another. He carefully choses materials, locations and styles appropriate to his chosen focus, offering the piece additional depth and a life of its own. Once he has created these works in nature, he leaves them to carry on their natural cycle and survive through the environment, emphasising the meaning of Drury’s work in relation to systems in nature. Drury’s body of work “Mushrooms | Clouds” highlights the relationship between humans and nature, through a serious of drawings, spore prints, a video and an installation created from mushrooms hung by string, forming a large mushroom shape suspended in the air. In nature, mushrooms are givers of life as they regenerate soil, however they are correspondingly poisonous and deadly. Due to their continual destruction and regeneration within nature, mushrooms are a suitable metaphor for the cycle of life that humans experience, and the theory of rebirth in Buddhism. The installation is made not in the midst of nature, but inside an old barn room, underlining the link between human life and nature. Drury’s work effectively communicates the intersection between humans and nature, whilst drawing upon religious traditions, science and the concept of dualism.
Despite their diverse personal aesthetics, Viola and Drury’s work encompasses the emergence of life, systems in the human body, spirituality, the idea of opposites and nature. Both artists’ works are captured through digital cameras, prolonging the life of their pieces, and increasing their appeal to this modern art exhibition. Whilst the meaning of Viola’s work is communicated through film, revealing the big themes of life and the opposites between them, Drury creates ephemeral masterpieces made from various raw materials, underlining his focus on the intersections between nature and culture, as well as the contraries amongst them. Viola’s and Drury’s works are unified through this exhibition to reveal the themes of human existence, and the way humans relate to nature with undertones of spirituality and the idea of dualism. ’The Twofolded Entity’ is a must see exhibition!
Chris Drury - Mushrooms | Clouds
Mushroom Cloud
Spore Waves - Video
Boletus Circle
Spore Grid
Destroying Angel
Spore Waves - Video
Boletus Circle
Spore Grid
Destroying Angel
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
EXAMPLE OF CURATORIAL STATEMENT
Fahrenheit 451
San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery
September 12 - October 25, 1997
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“…a book, in its purest form, is a phenomenon of space and time and dimensionality...” Dick Higgins
Traditionally, the book is a container for knowledge – fiction or factual information or theoretic ideas conveyed through text and images. The essence of a book, however, is a very human experience: a relationship between the communicator and the audience using the book/object as a catalyst. A book is a sequential experience; we view the current page in the present moment, while previous pages rest like transparent images in our memories. It is only in reflecting on the entire work in retrospect that we view the work as a whole entity. Consequently, the book is a very time-based form of communication that by its very nature is also a tactile experience, creating an intimate experience between the object and the viewer.
The objects and installations in Fahrenheit 451 deal with the disintegration and re-fabrication of both visual and verbal languages. The essence and beauty of language is that we can use words and images to create layers of transparent meanings, both to clarify ideas and to reach abstract depths of meaning that evoke a visceral response. In this way, visual language can trigger an intuitive response in the same way that odors or music have the ability to stimulate subconscious sensations for which we have no words.
The artists in Fahrenheit 451 use the book format as an intimate container of the self, creating a personal narrative or a sense of the body, using skin-like transparencies and human forms to convey a very tactile sensibility. These books relate to the fragile and vulnerable structures which we are wrapped in: skin, hair, bone. Physically, these books explore the translucent areas of communication between the interior self and the exterior world.
Our existence, how we assimilate ideas and disseminate information, and our personal interactions, have been drastically changed by the modern age. It is virtually impossible to maneuver through our world without being influenced by the electronic infrastructure that we have created. We now communicate through machines more often than we do face to face. The artwork in Fahrenheit 451 investigates the modern age from a distinctly human perspective. Many of the artists use electronic tools to represent very human experiences. They have chosen formats that investigate the role of language, the isolation of words or symbols and their potential to create multi-layered meanings. They have created statements on how humans have used technology against humans, and on how we survive in spite of an increasingly fragmented society.
Cheryl Coon, Curator |
HOW TO + EXAMPLE OF CURATORIAL PROPOSAL
Calls for curatorial proposals will be listed in the artist opportunity sites: Artist Opportunities Some of the materials that you will be expected to provide in your curatorial proposal: 1. A cover letter 2. A curatorial statement - outlining the theme of the show and a brief statement about the artists and their work. 3. Images 4. Your C.V. 5. Bios of each artist. |
| This is an EXAMPLE of a Call for Curatorial Proposals from a gallery in San Francisco. Root Division is an excellent gallery with exhibitions that often feature emerging artists and curators: Root Division
Curatorial Proposal Submission GuidelinesRoot Division is an arts & arts education non-profit organization that was founded in 2002 by artists, of artists, and for artists. Part of our mission is to offer opportunities for emerging and professional artists to develop, which includes exhibiting work and curating exhibitions. We embrace artists with no experience in these area as well as those with extensive resumes. As we consider submissions, we intend to include a broad range of artistic practices. We strongly encourage that you visit our space, familiarize yourself with our past & current exhibition program, and understand the mission of the organization before submitting a proposal. Strong proposals will be clear & concise, will present innovative & engaging ideas, and will intend to draw a diverse group of participants & visitors. While we do not exclude artists & curators from outside the Bay Area, our primary focus is presenting local emerging artists and local emerging curators. Review Process: In an effort to reduce labor & time intensive submission and review processes, we have an Initial Review & a Follow-Up Review Process. The Initial Review is a great opportunity to submit the kernel of the curatorial idea, presenting a limited number of images and writing materials. Once the Curatorial Committee completes the Initial Review, we will request additional materials and a project budget from a select number of applicants for a Follow-up Review. Please submit the following for INITIAL REVIEW:
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The Role of the Curator
A curator of an exhibition is the person who is in charge of organising it. The curator decides on which artists’ work will be featured, the title or name of the exhibition and the theme or subject of the exhibition.
Your role as an online curator is to:
- choose a theme that interests you
- select 6-10 artworks that suit your theme
- choose a title for your exhibition
- make a catalogue for your exhibition
Catalogues are important, as they provide people with information about the ideas behind the exhibition and the artists involved.
Your catalogue can be an introductory web page, which you can make in Front Page or any other web editor such as Dream Weaver. Include the following information in your ‘catalogue’:
- the title of the exhibition
- a list of the artists featured
- a short explanation of the idea behind the exhibition (what the theme is, why you chose particular artists)
- short biographies of the artists (where born, lived/worked, died)
- acknowledgements (an alphabetical listing of references that you used, see ‘How to Cite References’ on the Activities page)
Your exhibition will be your set of images. For each image, list the:
- artist
- title of the artwork
- year it was made
- materials/medium used to create it
- dimensions of the work (its size)
- current location of the work
CHRIS DRURY
| CHRIS DRURY
BIOGRAPHY | |
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| STARTING POINTS | |
| An Experience of Landscape | |
From early in my career I have walked and spent time in the so called ‘wild’ places on the planet. This has given me a bedrock of experience from which I continue to draw inspiration for all aspects of my work. My first long walk was in the Canadian Rockies with Hamish Fulton in 1975. I began to make small interventions in the landscape during these walks: a shelter made from materials to hand as a way of exploring how we dwell in the land; or a cairn built fast as a way of marking a remarkable place at an extraordinary time. Materials from these places would be placed in the rucksack and later made into baskets or small bundles. Works made from these experiences are essentially photographic. These early interventions have taught me how to use simple, local materials which can give rise to large structures, made cheaply and simply with a minimum CO2 footprint. Shelters later became cloud chambers and baskets, woven architectural structures. Today, when I walk, I tend to leave these landscapes untouched. Instead I use photographs, video, maps, earth pigment and satellite images to make works from the experience, after the event. I may also work with scientists and clinicians to make links to other areas in the microcosm. My two months spent in Antarctica (2006-7) act as a kind of absolute or benchmark, with which to compare and contrast other phenomena.
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| The Site | |
| When I am invited to make something on a particular site I take into account: the landscape and ecology, the local culture and the remit of the organisation. The land, the lie of the land and the material of the land will be the primary influence on the kind of work envisioned. This holds true for a work designed to go inside a building. These factors will be mediated by the requirements of the client and may mean a collaboration with various experts in the particular field. Through site visits, drawings and dialogue, the work will evolve until an agreed plan and budget emerges. Then the work will be constructed. A work may grow and change and may require a degree of management.
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| Mushrooms and Text | |
Like the composer John Cage, I have always been fascinated by fungi. Mushrooms are the great recyclers of our ecosystems. They break down dead matter back into the soils in which we grow our food. The mandala pattern of the gills reminds us of the cycles of the universe. A mushroom can feed you, kill you or cure you. I first used a mushroom spore print at the centre of the ‘Medicine Wheel’ in 1982 and have continued to collect mushrooms and their spore prints ever since. I now have a library of these prints which have been scanned and stored and which I can use as the basis of further works. Used in conjunction with hand written text in radiating lines mirroring the pattern of the gills or flowing out in more chaotic patterns, I am able to use this juxtaposition of pattern and text to make new connections.
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| The Body | |
A problem with modern societies is that we see ourselves as separate from nature and therefore at liberty exploit it. The result is that we destroy the very ground of our existence. However, it is obvious that we are nature and that systems in our bodies obey the same laws as systems in the universe. So I have continued to explore this using a number of different media, materials and scales; the largest, Heart of Reeds being several acres. During a residency at Conquest Hospital in Hastings I explored wave patterns in echocardiograms in works on paper, and later incorporated these same patterns into courtyard garden designs for hospitals. Two have so far been built and another should be completed in 2007. My continuing interest has been systems of flow in the body, notably in the heart, and similar systems in rivers, glaciers and weather patterns on the planet. I have made a number of works from Iceland using satellite images of storms experienced on the ground. In Antarctica scientists have been collecting echo-recordings of the icecap from aircraft and the resulting echo-images are remarkably similar to echocardiograms and give us a unique picture of the last 900,000 years, laid down in layers in the ice. It is my intention to work with this data to make new links.
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