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[contemporarythoughts]

Andy Warhol And His Twelve Faces

 Tate unleashes your inner…man during the ongoing Andy Warhol exhibition

Available to see : 12th of March - 15th of November 2020 at Tate Modern

by KLAUDIA KONDRACIUK | 25 OCT 20

The exhibition complements two already existing related events, Andy Warhol Inspired Dining destined for those who wish to enlengthen the experience and stay for… diner, enjoying dishes inspired by the exhibition as well as  Members Hours: Andy Warhol, designed for people who value their alone-time spend with the artwork free of the other visitors.  Three of them build the full experience of bringing back the memory of Andy Warhol at Tate Modern, the core being today’s topic.

The tittle of the exhibition corresponds with the organisation of the works within the place. Showcasing a lifetime of cultural identity, seen as both an artist and a man, with the latter being predominate, Andy Warhol is humanised in each of the 12 rooms situated at Tate Liverpool. As it is written at Tate Liverpool website of the exhibition: “[..] It draws attention to Warhol’s personal story and how his view of the world shaped his art” (Tate, 2020) and this is truthful to the reality.

Key of the display is the context of a contemporary art maker with the emphasis on personal drives and individual experiences that shape the artistry with theme of art mimicking life.

 The rooms are reminiscent to use a form of a narrative, looking back to polyphonic novel, featuring variety of different voices and points of view. Every room unwraps a different chapter of the artist’s biography, narrating the life and artistry of Andrew Warhola in the times of social and cultural shifts, seen at different stages. They provide context of looking at him as a human of change, artist of many genres, political activist, lover, son, American, victim of a shooting, consequently moulding more philosophical, stoic art, achieving the reception of the viewer to be constantly challenged, bombarded by a different image of an individual over and over again.  Seeing Warhol in 12 rooms makes an even more generalised division by grouping his life in three stages based on: cultural shift from a Czech ghetto to a new continent, queer identity and existentialism.

 Every space creates a moment, achieved by a rather intimate space, in order to meditate over the displayed objects. It shows a dialogue between inclusivity of the public display with an homage to similar spirit of Pop, being a fully realised theme within the exhibition and darkened spaces (see room 6) which arranges a sense of confidentiality. This contrast provides additional dynamic of Room 2, which establishes the relationship of Warhol with his models and the viewers, subconsciously desiring for the same connection.

 Execution of Room 2 copies this concept more literally, almost verbally, dedicating to the film Sleep. Made in 22 close-up clips during the spring and autumn of 1963 it examines influence of an oneiric element on the conscious. What function does it have? By showing someone’s act of sleep, something that intimate, the curators of the exhibition deliver quite the awakening. There is fear, desire and uncertainty brought from the world of dreams and implemented into the art. This is what droves an individual to make art. Linking this piece to draw upon those specific to human nature features suggests an everyday man point of view. Self-discovery through love unleash his inner artist even more and connect viewers with the nature of the exhibition, relating to one’s catharsis. At the end of a day, who is not inspired by the ones they love? Human act of creation is seldom dependent on this feeling, having its destructing and creative powers.

Male gaze is also noticeable within the numbers of the early drawings from the 1950s of the men he knew and desired, such as Charles Lisanby, a production designer, whom the artists travelled the world with and work Torso (1977).

The first, lack of predator toxicity, consequently achieving a feeling of curious self-discovery trough lenses of sexuality, emphasising on the interest of establishing queer identity. The later piece was described in the exhibition brochure, available in pdf format to gain additional insight of understating the context more : “This work is based on a Polaroid photograph of the actor and filmmaker Bobby Houston standing on his head. Warhol transforms the intimacy of the original image into a painting, which appears to reference ancient Roman sculpture and erotic photographs. Warhol referred to his paintings depicting male nudes as his ‘landscapes”.

By the use of linearity and synthesis together with care of detail (drawings), Warhol reveals his personal connection with the models within early drawings. Even though the forms are simplified,

the man differ from each other, carrying individualised physical qualities, allowing the viewer to even distinguish some personality traits, such as attachment, feeling of  insecurity or pride. Whereas Torso (1977) is an ode to men’s body, reminiscent to Michelangelo’s fascination over what perfection human body is and what potential does it have in the surrounding him world. By the lack of characteristics, the depiction does not objectify man, but celebrates aesthetics of beauty in a Renaissance way.

It is a similar take to what the artist offers in Sleep, where the poet, John Giorno is glorified for his physical beauty, looking back at technique of foreshortening in Andrea Mantegna’s Lamentation of Christ. Both characters are static, however the connotations cannot be more unrelated. Having said that, they relay on analogy of putting the model on a pedestal, what gives an additional layer of analysis to Sleep, sacralising the idea of love. The viewer is meant to make analogies during this exhibition experiment, examining the same context from a different time perspective to notice nuances characteristic to where in his life Warhol is, which leads to a reflection of one’s personal growth.

Selection of different techniques, acrylic paint with screen-print on canvas and a simplified line show the need of experiment within the same subject matter. It allows to experience multidimensionality of different approach to the queer fascination, preventing the project to be realised as featureless.

  Art of two different stages in his life, the period of cultural referencing capturing a sense of youth and post-shooting trauma, both still visually stimulating, but in different ways. Rooms 1-6 add a narrative of a world seen trough lenses of an excited and curious artist on the American scene of 1950s-1960s. Making art in the times of forbidden gay love, horror of AIDS, invading the continent since 1960s, loud political manifestations on the streets and racism was not creating a hospitable environment for self-expression. It is still a war, one after another, except for this time, people fight with the system among their country to defeat social constructs. The queer circle composed of poets, dancers, literates, designers and artists united to take a part in rewriting history. Ironically, some of them, including Warhol, became icons, faces of LGBTQ+ America, similarly recognisable to the ones, examined trough lenses of consumerism and social concept of a cult trough the technique of printmaking. This reasoning leads the audience to the room of Pop.  Warhol being a prolific illustrator, but constantly driven to challenge himself, turns to advertising imaginary.  The artist builds this pop, graphic version of himself, using personal experience to influence his career. Remembering struggles of his family’s emigrant background and poverty, he adapts the memory of eating a provisory version of a soup made of ketchup and salt to revolutionary idea of consumerist art, selling a dream of economic and social progress (Tate, 2020) Faced with criticism, Pop art, had its perfect justification to emerge at this moment in history, just after the time of Utility scheme, providing context for Warhol’s work. Romanticising of liberal accessibility of goods and art for the mass consumer. Although his pop oeuvre shows all of these signs, it also foreshadows  a part of him being dominated by the idea of death, which will evoke in pieces like Skulls (1976), Sixty Last Suppers (1986) and Richard Avedon’s photography of Andy Warhol (1969). This pessimistic school of thought was developed because of the incident of the 3rd of June 1968, the writer Valerie Solanas came to the Factory and shot Warhol, damaging his internal organs. Warhol was rushed to hospital and was declared clinically dead, but doctors managed to revive him. (Tate, 2020) The last example takes inspiration form the world of classical art, Leonardo da Vinci, his family kitchen, where the copy was hung and reacts to death of his former lover, Jon Gould. It is a bridge between old and young, the yin and yang perspective on art yet dominated by foreground decadency. Sixty Last Suppers could be seen as a moving portrayal of endless loss, reminiscent of ‘columbarium’, the wall graves found in many cemeteries. (Tate, 2020) Printmaking and copies are very telling in this context. Just like the blurring image of the last copy of Marilyn Monroe, both the image of the 12 apostles and the actress, die becoming a caricature for the sake of the masses.

It is comparable with the recent phenomenon of the aesthetic of a French Girl , (Vogue 2020) generalising and romanticising the visuals of a young woman living in Paris, including a nonchalant look and  making it easier to mimic by non-French masses to copy. In result, both of these examples are one nation centred, protecting one’s social appearance such as the idea to fit in. They are both delusional and almost mythical, playing a role in constructing a disappointing in reality expectation such as The American or French Dream. Curation of this piece, just like Pop art uses the tool of nostalgia, taking the viewer back to their adolescence to draw upon positive emotions often associated with one’s years of youth. Warhol dreams five times throughout the exhibition in Sleep, Self-Portrait, Pop period (Campbell’s Soup Cans, 1962), depicting Debbie Harry (1980), who daydreamed that Marilyn Monroe was her real mother and Silver clouds (1966). The not yet mentioned Paintings that float (Tate,2020) reveal the artist need for the audience to engage with his work.

Unconventional sculptures were made to interact with the viewer, bringing the association of waking dream, which could be arranged any way the audience like, becoming the masters of their sleep.

In the context of the exhibition, the chosen pieces help to realise Warhol as a man with secondary look at the artwork itself made for the art’s sake.

The exhibition is based around diversities of 12 rooms, adapting a book narrative, each room represents a chapter in Warhol’s biography and 3 perspectives, which are created by the viewer itself reacting to the way of display, grouping artworks based on the feeling of similarity. The viewer connects the dots, concluding that some pieces even though coming from different rooms, show a level of likeness, although the artworks come from different time periods. For example, audience might reject the chronological order of the works or rooms, because the final result will not be affected.

Instead of disorganising, this natural need of making relation between elements helps to understand that a person (Warhol) is not closing one chapter of their life irreversibly, but the doubt and fear might occur even at the final stage of someone’s life and happiness could be found beyond traumatic experience. Therefore, the exhibition is not quite autonomous, but proves that is well placed since Constellations, also situated at Tate, is using comparable visual vocabulary to examine Walter Benjamin’s theory of the thought image, holding similar concepts to the nature of this review, often build on non-chronological order of events. This narrative discloses new meaning of the context and potential of the exhibition.

According to the statement Curating is an art of storytelling (Kholeif, 2019), the audience feels hospitability to take a part in this experience of self-discovery, no matter what stage of life the viewer happens to be at. Ironically, diversity bring Tate’s audience together, connecting it with the exhibition, using catharsis as a tool of awakening the relatedness to the artist.

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Cucumbers, cucumbers and... Freud!

The power of the imagination is intrinsically linked to the mechanics of the psychological, without this we would have no baseline recurrences to see how colours, objects, and even the most simple geometric shapes fish ideas from the very back of the human subconscious in ways that although we mightn’t fully understand, we can confidently recognise the significance of.

A well-known example of this, is the theory of colours, and how the mind reacts to them, e.g. the colour red can inspire anger, passion and boldness, and alternately pink can inspire a calm youthful, playfulness. But those instinctive reactions we have can serve a very useful purpose in both the examination and the creation of art, as those colours will, in all likelihood, come to the forefront of our imagination when we are trying to express any of those aforementioned emotions. However the imagination does not just play in bold colours and conscious visualisations, arguably in fact, the imagination is the most fruitful, and the most creative, when consciousness is removed altogether.

The imagination is arguably most active, in the most interestingly uncontrollable way, during dreams. Disregarding for the moment, the exercise of trying to control dreams consciously, also known as ‘lucid dreaming’, dreams have been theorised extensively (most notably by Sigmund Freud), to not just be a fun activity to keep the unconscious occupied, but an exclusive opportunity to examine the subconscious, and all of the forgotten or possibly repressed ideas that are near impossible to examine from a conscious state. However, these ideas as we all know, are not presented on a silver platter to be examined, but reflected through objects, colours, and more often than not, lifelike scenarios, that may give us insight into our true thoughts or feelings on a matter that we mask for our daily routines. All of the aforementioned visualisations that we see in our dreams are a perfect example of how the imagination bridges to the subconscious in a way that we cannot fully understand, but nonetheless we can study how the imagination can take our deepest repressions, and uproot them in a fantastically beautiful way that is only a testament to the creative potential of every individual mind. Even more brilliantly however, the exercise of sharing our dreams with one another, and the multimillennial effort of passing down these stories and sharing recurrences of ideas or scenarios, allows us to examine the possibility of certain ideas, objects or colours, has a universal place in the human subconscious. These patterns of the subconscious taking form in our imagination, not only gives artists the reassurance that they may  express their subconscious imagination and know those ideas will be recognised and appreciated, but allows the art viewers to examine existing pieces, to recognise the significance and the meaning of visuals contained in a piece, and even the exciting idea of recognising the meaning of a visual that perhaps even the artist mightn’t have been able to perceive during a pieces creation.

However, the imagination is also equally able to bridge conscious visuals from there plain-faced presentation, to their subconscious associates. One of the most prolific examples of idea, is phallic imagery. A session our class had, featured a print by the name of ‘Peruvian Cucumbers’ by Shuk Hakarmel, contained in the piece are cucumbers constructed to support and uphold one another, with to the side left unsupported. Now although this piece is impressively constructed, it is the use of cucumbers, and their inherent phallic association, that layer the meaning of the visuals. If it were for instance oranges, or durian fruits, there may be meaning to be found in the shape of their construction, but cucumbers being the materials of the construction, allow for interpretations relating to the phallic e.g. brotherhood. However even on this singular phallic example the imagination can make further interpretations, when given the right context.

In the piece ‘The Annunciation, with St. Emidius’ by Carlo Crivelli (an artist known for an infatuation with cucumbers), in the lower right hand corner, a cucumber can be seen lying next to an apple, this makes for an interesting example, as not only do we have phallic iconography, we have it contrasting with religious iconography. Now if we imagine that the apple is an example of the apple theory that I have written about in a previous blog post, in that it is symbolic of the original sin, we can also quite easily imagine that the contrasting cucumber is the male side of the original sin, possibly partially absolving the female side of the original sin, and acknowledging both genders parts to play in the affair.

In conclusion, although the imagination is often fruitful in purposeful attempts to be creative, oftentimes the further we get from the restrictions of the conscious mind, the most abstract reflections of our subconscious can take shape thanks to the power of the imagination. These reflections can serve as very powerful inspirations for the creation of art but can also serve as uncomfortably familiar visuals to the viewer of a piece. Most interestingly however, visuals that have universal meaning and associations can give the artist a set of metaphorical tools that not only allow for an assurance of the viewers understanding, but also the opportunity to create new metaphors and new meanings by combining existing objects, known to elicit both conscious and subconscious associations. The first class made me feel inspired, what I hope I have shown trough all of my posts, creating a framing device between my first and last (at least for now) blogpost :) Thank you for the year and for the journey trough art with me and my... contemporary thoughts. :)

K.W.

[contemporarythoughts]

WHAT CAN BE FOUND UNDER THE L1 4JJ ADDRESS?

“OUTPUT gallery works exclusively with creatives from or based in Merseyside. Through free exhibitions and events, we hope to encourage the development, mobility and strength of our local art scene.

We have a highturnover of exhibitions because there are so many artists to work with here in the Liverpool City Region, and we want to work with as many as possible.”

The Output institution is made of three elements- the vintage shop, where one can go back in time, collecting pieces from the last decades, the cafe, where you can enjoy high quality organic beverages, which in majority are suitable for vegans and the heart of the building complex, output art gallery containing frequently changing exhibitions, revealing artistic talents of Merseyside.

Having a tour with the ½ of the White Pube [https://www.thewhitepube.co.uk/], Gabrielle de la Puente, who is playing a major role within the art institution, made me realize the importance of supporting local art and the artists making it. Crossing trough, the shop space, I found myself spending a lot of time with some of the artworks of the Output Open 4 exhibition, Feb 6- 23. The fourth edition gathered works based around illustration, painting, sculpture, poetry and video with music, presenting an overall sense of positivity, mystery of human body and mind with a pinch of world exploration by urbanity and nature, additionally enriched by vibrant colour palette. Dialogue between past and the present is not only to be seen in the clothes and accessories to buy in the designated area, but also in the artworks, although from different perspective. The poem Wearing Memories, made of two stanzas, deals with the topic of acceptance of the past of a sensitive individual, who is reliving memories, concretising a different subject, who used be a part of the reality but it’s still vivid in the persona’s awareness (the work is available to be read within the thirteenth photo at: http://outputgallery.com/EXHIBITIONS/OUTPUT%20OPEN%204/).

The poem, even though melancholic, depicts a journey one has to embark on to make peace with oneself and choses the most suitable, comfortable reality there is to exist in. It is not the only element linking the spaces together. The jewellery, often made of healing crystals, ready to buy and hand made by other artists gives an impression of closeness to earth, nature and the elements. A similar measure was used in the composition of curating artworks, achieving a form of a story that can be read piece by piece. Products of nature such as fruits, flowers, plants and humans interfere with the abstract, spiritual elements, the first and the third illustration (see the photo below), reminding us that something doesn’t have to have a physical form to be real, it can’t be seen, but can be experienced.

 A person understands the influence it has on him or her and expresses the mystical through art or literature (such as the aforementioned poetry). Despite if it’s a God-like being or more likely a reflection of  pantheism, what is suggested by the repetitive symbols of nature, “the story”, the exhibition presents, makes the viewer a narrator, who has the ability to read it in circles from the walls, in an order that is random, but still makes sense. My thoughts are directed to Buddha’s wheel of life, representing Samsara, a cyclic existence, and in the context of the display, birth and rebirth through memories and nature, exploring yourself and the world you co-exist with, Talk to me, I am the sun poems.

 That is why, contrary to Immanuel Kant’s transcendental idealism, I argue that one can experience those “supersensible” objects through nature and express it by art or literature, what makes him or her already familiarized with the concept of abstract.

The urban perspective remains in a very realistic manner. Except for the painting, where two of them depict industrialized vision of a city, suggesting a Merseyside landscape, one of them is rather romantic, inhabited by humans (the houses instead of factors) flora and a water reservoir. It reveals many faces of the area, proving it is not only made of different structures of the landscape, but also the people who change mutually with the landscape. 

The DIY video with the already made artworks show the joy of making, creation of the object, by which one is able to diversify the inhabited space. It proves that the theme of the exhibition is mutual, the artworks share a level of similarity, even though they were made by multiple autonomous artists. As we read on the website: “This year’s edition includes work by Hannah Arhinful, Mia Cathcart, Ollie C, Natalie Denny, Catherine and Sarah Garvey, Ann Gilchrist, Fauziya Johnson, Faisal Koukash, Gabriel Starkey and Linny Venables. We hope you enjoy the show.”

 K.W.

[contemporarythoughts]

Just a funny art history reference for the upcoming days haha x

[contemporarythoughts]

useful link, referring to my latest post about Digital era of museums and galleries:) Go, explore and stay safe at home:)

Remember that you’re not alone even when you think you are. If you’re feeling lonely you should still look after your mental health while being quarantined, https://youngminds.org.uk/blog/looking-after-your-mental-health-while-self-isolating/#helplines-and-resources. Lots of love x Klaudia

[contemporarythoughts]

DIGITAL ERA OF MUSEUMS

During the time of quarantine, a lot of museum and galleries lend a helping hand to their visitors. An art viewer can explore exhibitions, interiors as well as the exteriors of the frequently historical buildings within the art institutions around the world. Having participating in the conversation with my contemporary art professors and artists such as Ryan Gauge and Andrew Shaw, we realised processing the new way of presenting art is very different for people and it is determined on different factors such as personal outlook on relationship between the viewer and experiencing art.

From the curatorial perspective this project is creating a better engagement with the community during unfavourable circumstances, keeps art and artistic practice still relevant. In a way you can still has a dialogue with people through media using the digital language. It helps you create more of a mental space instead of the physical one, building a certain level of sensitivity towards art and your relationship with it and also activates a new way of thinking about how art is acquired in the 21st century. On the other hand, I romanticise the experience of looking at art, I look for almost a spiritual connection with an artwork and the artist, which is not to be found by maintaining this new network method. Looking back at the male art movement in the 1950 s, photocopying artworks trough the postal system, leading to more conceptual practices and emphasising on the fact that internet started to be more and more accessible, being a rise-down for net-artists it makes us realise it was actually happening it the past, preparing us for the moment within art history which is happening now, giving a historical background and opening up a conversation about are artists their spaces. From this experience we learn that art doesn’t need a space to be exhibited, but can it be truly experienced? I stand by my words, I think not, which doesn’t change the fact that museums and art galleries are being well represented in general for a common art visitor, which is very admirable.

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How Freud, Baudelaire and Foucault can be gathered together within one urban space? Jasmir Creed’s paintings bring up many historical connections at once. Consequently, her art gives us a sneak peak of her extensive knowledge in other humanistic fields of study, besides the artistic practise, such as philosophy, literature, psychology or sociology, which enriches quality of her work even more by adding a sense of cultural depth to it. Psycho-geography of cities, where “psycho” refers to emotions/feelings of human’s mind and “geography” referring to social & cultural position of spaces, is a type of narrative within Creed’s works, which examines the relation and tension between element A, being an individual person or a group of them already existing within the city space and point B, being a concept the space represents, such as ubiquitous consumerism or the barrage of information a 21st century city habitant experiences. Reality is viewed trough lenses of Charles Baudelaire’s concept of flaneur, which previously inspired many artists, including creating a Parisienne world of boulevards and cafes, Edward Manet and defined as the objects we can spot and interact with in the area of every city. The “urban anxieties” start when you realise that city is human’s antagonist, both closing and opening itself on people, according to the artist in a “spider-like” manner as a symbol of capitalism. Space is depicted as creative and full of possibilities, but after all rather pessimistic, being additionally deepened by dirty colour palette and often use of ink as medium. It leads us to Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis and the power of dreams, which is further inspected in “Pool of Life” painting, inspired by Swiss psychologist, Carl Jung’s, dream about Liverpool. The painting’s composition was divided into pieces, separate moments, telling different and yet the same story. Creed is using his concept of analytical psychology and makes the reference twice, using both formal and more conceptual measures to achieve this effect. The composition itself resembles a broken mirror, puzzle pieces seemingly mismatched, but it’s only a starting point for further examination.   I found her works referring to Venetian Renaissance colourists such as Titian or Bellini. She is frequently showing reflections of the city, different types of architectural features etc. in the water, giving romantic undertone to them just as the old masters did, except Creed’s work do not include colorito (colour) and disegno (drawing) practise or technique. I feel like it was commuted for a conceptual idea of distortion of the truth of a city to be depicted and globalised.

[contemporarythoughts]

Painting of the week:) - The Lady of Shalott by J. W. Waterhouse 

I believe that art should be autonomous from any expectations, political or social. However, as an art historian it is my duty and privilege to use critical thinking and art history knowledge to comment upon ongoing problems trough art. By selecting artworks and use of right context I try to take a role as an art mediator to question, help and articulate my thoughts trough art. Lady Shalott, depicted in both Tennyson’s poem and within the painting, is a tragical character, she lives in isolation in a tower and doesn't dare to look upon reality, except if it’s through its reflection in the mirror. Waterhouse immortalises human’s despair, consciousness of one’ s upcoming death, since the mirror cracks after she took a peek at a handsome knight, which activated the curse of death on the river.

We should dare to look. Being aware of the current situation, I want to remind everyone that it’s ok to be afraid, letting your emotions to breathe and look for one another. Maybe someone needs our help? I don’t mean it as to be a herculean task, because you need to be safe yourself first, but someone you live with or perhaps calling a friend or your mom who’s panicking. Do not isolate on problems or on each other’s moral support. Stay safe:) 

[contemporarythoughts]

ARE YOU IN THE MARKET FOR ART?

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some photos from Blackpool!

Grundy Art Gallery (1 & 2)

Abingdon Studios

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Hi!:) I was making some refrences to paintings in my latest post Blackpool and its treasures […], so I thought I would add them anyway, because there was one photo limit to the post:) Enjoy your weekend and stay safe!:)  

“Susanna and the Elders” (1555-1556) by Tintoretto 

"A Sunday on La Grande Jatte" (1884) by Georges Seurat & detail (monkey) 

[contemporarythoughts]

Blackpool and its treasures- Unique Bath towels.       Having a breakfast in HIVE in Blackpool made me realise that art is coming out of galleries on bigger and bigger scale. It makes me really happy that artists have a platform to show and sell their work in a day-to-day environment, in a café, which  makes art itself more approachable. Four paintings hanging on the walls, two still life and two landscapes ready to be purchased, reminded me of Collector plan in welsh STORIEL, “own the art you love” project, which sympathised with the idea of art education on a daily basis, which is also being pursued by the artistic locations on the map of Blackpool and I count HIVE as one of them, because of putting effort in promoting & spreading awareness about local art. While on the subject of artistic locations , I also want to mention the Abingdon Studios. The parallel between them and HIVE is the everyday they bring to art. Garth Gratrix, the founding director of Abingdon Studios Ltd, whom I had the pleasure to meet, employs everyday and DIY materials such as wood, concrete blocks and found objects. He created a modern atelier studio, providing safe space to represent art, especially in lenses of sexuality and social identity. According to the artist, the studios were called by some as “messy space for messy people”. It addressed the problem of commissioned and independent art, the dialogue the today world has with commissioned gallery and autonomous studios. Modern artists do not just “sell” the art  they produce , but also the personality that goes with it. They have to built up an appearance not only in the artworld but also in the business industry. Gratrix said he had to negotiate, while building a certain level of importance to who he was as an art representative, to not be seen just as a “messy” owner of the new propriety. Personal details can affect the way you are perceived. He mentioned the “joke in the room” problem, when he felt as it was expected from him as a queer man to be joking rather than having a business conversation. I think like a constant reminder of that was the page of an article in one of the studios called: “ Are You in the market for Art?” hung within a newspaper-like composition on the wall. The practise is questioned not only by potential patrons but by the audience criticality, too. They are more interested in the process of making art, answering the question of what drove the artist to create this piece, the experience rather than the importance of aesthetics. It feels more personable this way, the viewers try to minimalise the unfamiliar in the mysterious figure who calls himself an artist in the 21st century. The audience is curious, trying to find a safe space, a sign or a moment that will allow them to bring an artist to a less intimidating form. What I find surprising it’s not the art that’s a component of relevance for a modern viewer, but the person who produces it. It’s a very Duchamp-like approach (art cannot exist without its creator, who is not only valuable, but the most important component, : 'I don't believe in art. I believe in artists.') The place gathering all the arts is obviously an art gallery. While my staying  in Blackpool, I went to Grundy Art Gallery, an important place in Gratrix’s life: “ When I was a child I thought, this feels like environment I want to be in, to be a part of “. He was everything his art was, playful, intelligent and with ready wit. Well aware of his heritage, the artist fulfilled the art viewer’s desire of getting to know him as a human being not just as an artist by introducing us to two male figures in his life, grandfather and father. Frivolity of taking a bath in “Shy Girl”, interfere with  aesthetics related to the darkest times in history of human kind (horror of concentration camps his grandfather experienced), consequently the artwork’s philosophy is more comparable to Susanna and the Elder’s bath than to seeming wantonness of summer holidays by the seaside. Even though the bath towels respond to the marine space and seeking for material relationships between them, it has a lot more to it. By making revolution in art through simplicity and play, but adding to it conceptualism, Gratrix again explores the artworld in very Duchamp-like way. Yet, Blackpool- located artist remains exceptionally original, adding to his art a part of himself- a pinch of comedy, he’s creating a unique three-way dialogue between us, him and the past. Then we laugh and notice that the past is also the contemporary ( from the 1940s to now, the importance of pink triangle symbol within LGBTQ+ community perceived back then as shame mark) we are the artist (moving the towels, by touching them we invade their constancy; a similar concept in “The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Even”, M. Duchamp) and the artist is the viewer, watching us from a distance. The UK society is mostly working class and “Shy Girl” is about a middle-class leisure time on a beach, but just as in "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte" by G. Seurat, it has a “ugly side” to it, revelling imperfections of society (monkey suggests the women’s a prostitute and this piece refers to sexual discrimination). The pink triangle, here a white triangle, being a part of the artistic narrative, makes the artist himself more approachable by drawing upon a personal anecdote and bringing it in the aesthetics. Sense of authenticity is additionally deepened by the fact Gratrix is a gay male artist, using his artistic voice and space given as a platform to speak out. Composition of “Shy Girl” is made of three bath towels, two of them are spread out, whereas the third one is crumpled. As we already know, they provoke a conversation about sexuality and identity but what I found especially interesting is that within the making process, the thought came first before the playful colour palette. The artist mentioned  the issue of identifying gender with colour- “feminine” or “ladylike” paints used for the art objects act really bold, standing in the way of stereotypical gay men portrayal, reminding me of increasing gender issues awareness welsh art exhibition: “ Button it up” in STORIEL, Bangor ( I found out that Roy Gratrix, the artist’s grandfather, played for the Bangor City Welsh Club, too!). The exhibition informs that pastel coloured children clothes began to be made from the middle of the 19th century with the start of cultural expectations given at birth. Language of colours is again linked to the narrative. “Cottage by the sea” towel, dominated by different light shadows of blue, purifies working class labour, makes it to be more elegant than it actually is, without pointillist monkeys and biblical duplicity (Seurant, S. & the elders). The artwork is  personified by the choice of its placement. Seen from every angle by an opening in the balcony upstairs and by being able to rearrange the towels, it truly resembles a shy girl trying to cover herself from a male gaze. Maybe we are the noisy elders in this situation? But the artwork’s purpose is to be seen, even watched and questioned and seeing Gratrix reaction when my professor accidentally left a pencil mark on the medium makes me understand the spirit of “Shy Girl”. After all it really has a positive, playful charm and impishness, which can not be forget as being a true essence of the artwork. - K.W

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me & JONAH- 16 STUDIES by Michael Cullimore during 1970+ exhibition at STORIEL, Bangor

Cullimore examines the process of birth and rebirth, circles of growth and decay

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GLOBALISATION- we can see ourselves in a mirror, the process of globalisation absorbs us just like glass absorbs the light and the image

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New beginnings

While visiting my grandma in green Wales, I was looking for any signs of artistic life in her little town. What surprised me is that, Bangor, has a great prospering art centre, art & ceramic collections, a research archaeological team and yet ,no art history course at the University of Bangor. To be honest I was tempted to study in Wales, being closer to my family, go on a mountain walk from time to time, but the university course offer did not meet my expectations. Because of including to the town map a place like STORIEL, Bangor created new possibilities for itself, but because of lack of professional education within art at the University, they have not been fully explored. However it still brings art-centred audience, what can be said from my personal perspective and because of what I have learned during the Art in the City module last semester, what is being further developed by more and more Arabic Countries. (Louvre Abu Dhabi). As I found during my research, STORIEL, among with two other art galleries, Orielau Celf and Orielau Hanes pursue a Collector plan which encourages visitors to purchase contemporary artworks. The project covers educational and intellectual needs of art gallery' visitors and collectors, introduces them to a concept of modern patronage, encourages not to be afraid of modern art (a similar concept to the White Pube), but also it expends the art market. They create a new conscious art viewer and gradually a potential buyer for both already known and new art makers. Remaining approachable, it does not discriminate within more and less wealthy or does not invite only established art collectors. On the contrary, interest free loans are available from £50. I would say it prepare and rise an art gallery audience, who's aware of their needs. After all it is a place for the gallery visitor to feel comfortable in. That is why the Collector plan is fully based on the visitor's subjective needs, their interest, taste, the amount of money they want to spend. As I read from the brochure: "Own the art you love" or "Collector plan is an interest free credit service which can help you buy the object of your desire", mediating in such a way is a step taken in the dialogue between an art centre and a common visitor, which really pleases me because they determine themselves as an artistic community by staying interactive, using modern tools to show modern art, so the contemporary art scene is really much alive.

It gave me a lot of ideas for my upcoming exhibition review since there were three (three!) major exhibitions- Paul Davies: Welsh not, 1970+, Sain 50 and Button it up, all spreading awareness about local art, cultural identity, gender roles and representing them within their exhibition. My only problem is which one to pick!