It Makes Sense! Art Galleries in the Digital Age
Image courtesy of Indagare.com
Have you wondered why contemporary art ‘videos’ are shown within the confines of a gallery space? How they can be a draw card for big events, such as The Sydney Biennale, show up in the Art Gallery of NSW, not to mention your local gallery? I mean, COME ON, this is the Digital Age. Fast furious searching is at your fingertips. Galleries online, youtube, blogs, vodcasts, access to all at lightning speed. Doesn’t it seem odd then to challenge the modern-day-time-conscious person to get in a car, drive to a gallery, and find a park to see something they could see online? Surely it is a signal that the traditional art world is antiquated and not up with the times. Or is it?
Just as the ‘Fine Art Photo’ vs the ‘Happy Snap’ intrigues me, so does this issue of video art within a gallery. Rather than antiquated, I believe the galleries are rolling with the times not only keeping up with technology and cutting-edge art, but also in keeping one of the most important aspects of human desire, need, and fulfilment. I am talking about experience. The gallery visit stimulates all five senses; sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. Sure you might get to watch the same video online that you could see in a gallery. However, in the confines of your home or office, you are missing out on the whole experience. If you make the effort to get to a gallery, you can SEE an entire exhibition (which is also an added component of how the video you are watching complements other works of art on show in various mediums). You might choose to HEAR more about the artist and his or her influences (by headset or gallery guide), which will give greater meaning to what you are watching. You can inhale deeply and perhaps SMELL fresh paint of the gallery walls, or the alluring scent of the attractive patron that just walked past. You will more than likely finish your outing with the TASTE and aroma of a fresh cup of coffee and perhaps people watch from a nearby café. But most importantly, even if the art you view is not your style, you will leave with an uplifted feeling, a sixth sense if you like. You have nurtured your soul, you have experienced the talent of fellow human beings. And in the walk to your car you might even feel the sun on your face.
Current Exhibitions
At a Glimpse: PODspace Gallery re-opens Wednesday 26 January 2011
Lucas Grogan and Luke Thurgate
Opening Night: Thursday 27 January, 6-8pm
Exhibition Dates: Wed 26 January - Sat 12 Feburary 2011
PODspace near Octopod 3/231 King St Newcastle, NSW 2300 (1st Floor), entrance on Auckland St, opp Civic Park Open: Wed - Sat 12-5pm
Must See: Jus’ Drawn: proppaNOW Collective
A Linden Centre for Contemporary Arts & NETS Victoria touring exhibition on display at Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery.
This exhibition comprises a group of new works on paper by the artists known collectively as proppaNOW. Consisting of urban Aboriginal artists who have already won individual acclaim – Vernon Ah Kee, Richard Bell, Gordon Hookey and Laurie Nilsen, as well as emerging artists such as Tony Albert, Bianca Beetson and Jennifer Herd, this group dispels the notion that Indigenous art needs to be from a remote area to be ‘authentic’.
Last Days: Yabun
Australia’s premier one-day festival of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. Broadway, Sydney 26 January 2011
Take a Drive: Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life 1990-2005
A must-see exhibition from the celebrity portait photographer of our time. Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney Until 27 March 2011
As a photographer I see my images on the computer screen more than I can remember. I know those images better than the back of my hand. However seeing them well printed, mounted or framed hanging in a great space fills me with joy and lets me experience them in a new, all encompassing way. I totally agree with you that you must slow life down and smell the roses, or the coffee, and enjoy the moments.
Laura,
Couldn’t agree more. The gallery experience is unbeatable. I took a group of my adult students to the NSW Gallery on Sunday - many of them, even though all passionate about art, had not been to a major gallery before. It knocked their socks off - especially the Chinese Warriors. I think the online gallery has a role in exposing people to a style of art or a feel of what might be on offer - I know many of my students have been attracted to class because of what they’ve seen on my gallery. Also my exhibition archive keeps a body of work that was once shown in one space together - even though individual pieces have long since been sold etc. Well done on the article. By the way, after the success of our last excursion, the students are already planning the next one through the Newcastle galleries! Their appetites for the gallery experience has been whetted!
Thanks, Steve
http://www.stephenjames.com.au
http://www.huntervalleyart.com.au
I was in a show in 1998 that was a Bombay Saphire Gin theme by 10 or so artists. My piece was a cubist watercolor interpretation, and my strongest competitor was a photoshopped forest with labels leading up a path, and bottle trees. I thought he had won because it was really cool. It looked like an ad in a magazine! I won, by public and jury vote, and was stunned. I’m glad people still appreciate the craftsmanship involved in holding a brush, even though I am fully impressed as an artist by what digital technology can do to help people share their artistic ideas in an professional and polished way.
As for galleries, I say, computer church will never replace what one seeks in a cathedral, and digital galleries will never replace what one seeks in a proper art gallery. I’m sure smokers feel the same way about “the patch”.