Monday, 17 November 2008
Cildo Meireles
Red Shift 1967-84, 3 part installation
Brazilian conceptual artist Cildo miereles has made some of the most politically telling,aesthetically seductive and philosophically intriguing works of the last for decades.
"A work by Miereles often starts in a commonplace, usually domestic object, or a childhood memory, which becomes transmuted into a perceptual, philosophical, even a cosmological speculation, without, however, losing its grit, its roots in social reality - a reality often harsh but marked by human resilience and inventiveness." (Guy Brett, co-curator 2008).
What really intrigues me with his work is that it's interactive. You walk through it, around it, underneath it and in it. It's part of an indescribable feeling of excitement and feeling so involved with it. Miereles says " For me the art object must be, despite everything else, instantly seductive." I found that the wide range of materials and media was so vast, from plastic, glass, metal and fabric and so much more.
My favorite installation was room 4, Red Shift. Miereles takes us into a disorientating all-red world. the first part is 'Impregnation', a domestic setting where every item and object is red, from the telephone to the items in the fridge. The initial concept was to imagine a place in which someone would accumulate the greatest number of objects in different shades of red.
Second part was titled 'Entorno' meaning spill and environment. A bottle appears to have spilled a red liquid which looks so real i wasn't sure if i could step on it. The spill is so large you wouldn't expect to see out of such a small bottle which lead to the third part 'Shift'. In a pitch black room a small slanted sink with a tap dripping red liquid is all you can see. It was a very weird experience being in these rooms, so surreal and almost a slight terror ran through me as i walked into each part.
I have never felt like this in any exhibition i've been to all my life, the work is so unique and intriguing. I absolutely enjoyed every moment of this exhibition that i went twice, even that was not enough.
Monday, 3 November 2008
Sir John Soane's Museum
This museum is one of my favorite places, it's like a secret house with the biggest collection of antiquities. This is the house of England's greatest Architect. After his death in 1837 his house was turned into a museum and was kept in it's shape and form ever since. No changes have ever been made.
Walking into the house made me feel like i was walking back in time looking at historical objects from all around the world. The display is very different than any other museum i have been to. It looks just like an over cluttered house. It does feel very magical and enchanting when you walk around the house and into the rooms. the objects are displayed a any person would display ornaments around their own living space. Most people have a cabinet of curiosities full of wonderful and weird items collected from different places and i feel like the museum is a huge cabinet of curiosities.
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