Rietveld Schroder House, Autocad
Clinic floor plan, Autocad
Clinic 3d view, Google sketchup
Thursday, 24 October 2013
Wednesday, 23 October 2013
Originals: Part 4
When you have too much time in your hands (just before a final exam), you can always weave a gift bag...
The mere-exposure effect
According to the mere-exposure effect phenomenon:
"People tend to develop a preference for things merely because they are familiar with them. In social psychology, this effect is sometimes called the familiarity principle. The effect has been demonstrated with many kinds of things, including words, Chinese characters, paintings, pictures of faces, geometric figures, and sounds. In studies of interpersonal attraction, the more often a person is seen by someone, the more pleasing and likeable that person appears to be." -WikipediaWe see our own faces in the mirror pretty much everyday. Does this mean that we perceive ourselves to be more attractive than we actually are?
Tuesday, 22 October 2013
"Abstract Expressionist New York" -AGO, Toronto, 2011
A
typical museum or art gallery’s function is to promote art and culture, and
make them accessible to the general public in a comprehensive manner. Alongside
the permanent collections, travelling exhibitions such as the Abstract Expressionist New York, gives
the public an opportunity to witness an even wider range of art work. Rather
than presenting Abstract Expressionism as a unified movement, the exhibition
presents the American art movement by dissecting it and presenting it in a chronological,
as well as thematic organization of works. It shows a gradual process by which
this movement, with its diverse styles, developed New York into the centre of
the International art world.
It
is quite common for exhibitions to have a linear chronological sequence format,
starting with the oldest and ending with the most recent work. While chronology
is used as a principle tool in organizing art work, the unidirectional
visitor’s route at the Art Gallery of Ontario also allows an easy transition
from one concept to another, without any distractions. The visitors enter the
exhibition through room 1. This room holds 7 paintings that show the roots of
Abstract Expressionism in the form of Surrealism. Most of the paintings date
back to the 1940s and happen to be some of the oldest work in the exhibition.
The room also includes Wall writings and information panels. These panels
explained how New York became the home to many renowned European artists from
the Avant Garde and surreal baranches, who had to flee from Europe during the
second World War.
Although
the themes and dates of the paintings changed from room to room, some of the
things that stayed uniform include wall colour, painting information panels and
theme panels on the wall. Each room contained one to three wall panels. The
designer of these panels divided up them up into four parts in order to have an
aesthetic balance. Each panel contained the title of the theme, a quotation
from an artist and the artist’s photograph. The painting information panels
where plain and white. They were placed on the floor, in front of the paintings
with one edge slightly elevated for a better view by the audience. Although the
colour of the walls remained white throughout the exhibition, their hue looked
different at different locations due to the variations in the intensity of the
overhead lighting.
The
lighting varied according to the mood associated with the theme of the rooms.
Room 1, which marked the beginning of Abstract Expressionism, was brightly lit
and had a welcoming atmosphere since it was the first setting that the visitors
got to experience. On the other hand, Room 7 was dimly lit, and corresponded
with the mood of the paintings in the room by Mark Rothko, who wanted to convey
emotions such as tragedy, ecstasy and doom through his work. The darkest area
in the exhibition was the corridor-like space between Room 7 and Room 8. This
tiny space had a movie theatre like atmosphere since it contained many video
recordings which the visitors could watch. The subject matter of these videos
included information about the artists’ lives, explanations about the painting
techniques used by artists and statements about the Abstract Expressionism
movement as a whole. Some of the other rooms also had books and audio
recordings, which served the same purpose.
While
going through the exhibition, viewers not only noticed the significant changes
in the dates, but also the evolution of the media used by the artists. The
audience started with flat paintings in Room 1, and came across photographs and
gelatine silver prints in room 3. While Room 4 contained drawings and
sculptures, the common media changed again in Room 5, where the viewers got to
see textured drip paintings by Jackson Pollock.
The
grand ending of the exhibition came with Philip Guston’s work from the 1960s.
While the first few paintings were from the same time as the end of World War
II, the last paintings of the exhibition marked the beginning of the cold war.
Both the themes and the structure of the floor plan followed a circular
pattern. Room 10 was designated as the
gift shop that sold merchandises that replicated famous Abstract Expressionism
concepts.
Originals: Part 2
Koné bou, Oil on canvas
Aboriginal Australia, Silk painting
Mekong Maybe, Oil on canvas
Debutant, Oil on canvas
Buffalow Waters, Water colour and ink
Monday, 21 October 2013
Originals: Part 1
Peacock at Sunset, Acrylic and paper mosaic
Calendar Terraces, Oil on canvas
Meeting up, Oil on canvas
Nani, Oil on canvas
Pietà or Revolution by Night: A Freudian Narration
Andre Breton’s surrealist manifesto highlights
the importance of dreams and the freedom of imagination. He states that
imagination has an “unsparing quality” and compares it with the thought process
of those who are insane. Society is bound by a set of rules and
Breton explains how one can experience the pleasures of life only when he
breaks loose from all these rules. Breton was fascinated by Sigmund Freud’s
work on psychoanalysis and many artists from the surrealist movement including Ernst
often used his ideas in their work. Freud gave importance to the unconscious
mind, which is why many surreal artworks appear to be dreamlike and ambiguous. According
to Pierre Reverdy, a strong image forms when two or more juxtaposed realities
come together. The more distant the realities are, the stronger the image will
be.
Breton published his manifesto in 1924, while
Ernst finished the Pietà in 1923. As it is a very early example of surrealism,
the composition does not have elements that strongly juxtapose each other. However,
Ernst has played with the viewer’s mind by taking a concept from early
Christian art and giving it a Freudian twist. The title of the painting Pietà comes from biblical imagery where the
Virgin Mary is seen cradling the dead body of Jesus. In Ernst’s painting,
instead of his mother, he is seen in the arms of his father.
Ernst converted religious iconography into a
psychoanalytic narration of the Oedipus complex. This complex denotes the
rivalry between a father and a son for the love of the mother. Traces of this
theory can be seen in other works by Ernst such as Oedipus Rex and Aquis
Submersus. In
Oedipus Rex, Ernst provides a
condensation of sexual imagery with the nut representing the mother. In Aquis Submersus, we see the father
represented as a shooting target, signifying the brutal rivalry between the
father and the son. In both Pietà and Aquis Submersus, Ernst has painted his father in dull colours and
he appears to be sporting a moustache. The physical resemblances between the
two works are unlikely to be by chance.
Although the nature of relationship Ernst had with his
mother is uncertain, it is quite well known that he did have conflicts with his
father. The man in the painting can be identified as Ernst’s
father, Philippe, due to his moustache. Ernst’s father was a devout
catholic teacher. He found Ernst to be unconventional and criticized him for
that.
Ernst’s choice of Pietà as
a subject matter seemed very fitting seeing as how his father was a Christian
teacher and an amateur painter (Gale, 1997). Those who had traditional values
like Philippe, admired artists like Michelangelo, who dedicated their artwork
to the Christian church. The image of Philippe bears a resemblance to the
strict character in Giorgio de Chirico’s painting, The Child’s Brain. Ernst painted himself with a grey lifeless
colour which makes him look petrified and the form of his head looks like it
was a part of a Greek statue. This gives an image of a domineering father who
turned his son into stone by holding him back and demanding him to live a
conservative life.
The petrified look resembles the stiff posture of
patients with catatonic schizophrenia. This connects his painting
to surrealism even more as one of the common themes of surrealist art is
insanity. The shirt worn by Ernst is similar to a white asylum
uniform. Ernst often used unique catatonic poses and movements in his paintings.
Other than the Pietà, he has also used it in his famous
piece Au Rendez-vous des Amis. While
Ernst holds an awkward position in the Pietà, Rendez-vous des Amis shows many people
either holding a catatonic pose or repeating an action over and over again,
which is another symptom of catatonic schizophrenia. Ernst might have gotten
his inspiration for painting these figures after seeing the pictures of some
schizophrenic patients from Emil Kraepelin’s publication, Dementia Praecox.
Another theme that was often used in surrealism was
dreaming. The title of the painting: Pietà or
Revolution by Night hints at a nocturnal activity and the act of dreaming is
usally associated with the night. According to Freud, dreams have some very
strong connections to the unconscious mind. The whole composition has a
dreamlike setting as it is segmented and forms no logical unity. For
representing different people in the painting, Ernst has used different
techniques. His painter father, has been portrayed wearing monochrome formal
attire, and conventional colour shading has been done while painting to give
him a realistic look. On the other hand, Ernst looks two
dimensional due to his selective use of colour and abstraction. The third man
in the painting has been created using yet another style. It is hard to tell
whether he is supposed to be an actual character from the narration of the
painting or just a wall drawing, as Ernst has only drawn a dark outline of him.
The identity of the third figure is debatable. It may be an illustration of
Freud, but looking at the bandage on his head, it may even be a war veteran
injured during the First World War. The bandage may also refer to the story
behind the Oedipus complex.
The Oedipus complex derived from a Greek myth about
King Oedipus. Through a series of unfortunate events Oedipus ended up killing
his father, Laius, and marrying his mother, Jocasta. It was later revealed to
everyone what Oedipus had done unknowingly. In shame, Jocasta hanged herself to
death and Oedipus blinded himself. The bandage on the third man’s head can
allude to a son turning blind as a punishment for desiring his mother.
Surrealism was all about turning off the conscious
world. Our dreams often reflect our daily lives. That is why it is so hard to
distinguish between dreaming and moments of waking. Ernst came up with this
composition by fusing his troubled childhood memories and dreams with a
Freudian explanation for them. His detestation for his father
clearly stands out in his paintings. We also get a glimpse of his concern over
gaining the approval and respect from his father. Although the two men imitate the
Virgin Mary and Jesus, their expressions look nothing like the religious
figures. While as a mother, the Madonna shows her emotions and attachment to
her son through tears, Ernst’s father pulls a face of indifference and tedium.
According to Freudian theory of psychoanalysis, the only successful resolution
of the Oedipus complex can come when the son identifies with his father. As
Ernst was not able to do this, he was unable to recover from his psychological
sufferings.
Ernst was dissatisfied with his father. But due to
“castration anxiety”, he was unable to take any action on it. In
psychoanalysis, the fear of castration is a metaphor that helps maintain the
balance of power in families. This symbolic castration creates an unconscious
fear in the mind of the son of being degraded or dominated by his father. As a
result, he stores away any rebellious thought in the unconscious part of his
mind.
Another reason for a son to repress his conflicting
feelings would be the fear of society. Incestuous behavior is taboo, so in
order to fit into society, a son must repress any kind of desire he might have
for his mother. The blue and white shower head attached to the wall in the
painting can represent water that one uses to cleanse oneself. Figuratively
speaking, this cleansing provides the removal of any inappropriate thoughts
that the son might have. Once again Ernst has used Christian imagery connecting
the composition to the act of baptism. Christians use baptism to cleanse
themselves of any impurities or sins. Perhaps the son in the composition is
also trying to use water to cleanse any impure or violent thoughts he might
have regarding his parents.
Max
Ernst’s Pietà is an exceptional piece of early surrealist artwork.
Taking Breton’s Manifesto into account, Ernst projects his imagination on to
the canvas paying close attention to the Freudian theory of psychoanalysis. The
composition evokes an idea of the subconscious mind and dreaming, both are
themes that have been used repetitively in the surrealist movement. The Pietà reflects the intellectual and
emotional concerns of the artist regarding his relationship with his father.
Due to the conflict with his father, Ernst chose to portray a narrative using
the Freudian Oedipus complex. This theme appears constantly throughout many of
Ernst’s work. The artist’s feelings and Freud’s theory go well together because
they both revolve around the rivalry and tension between a father and his son.
The fate of artifacts: Conflicts between Preservation and Access
Museums and art galleries allow us to connect with
historical events. They preserve significant objects from the past and the
present in order to serve the needs of the future generations. Without them,
our understanding of culture, science and society would be incomplete. But
these educational institutions are pulled into constant debate over the
conflicts between preservation and access of artifacts. In order to engage the
audience more and to give them the opportunity to experience a variety of
sensory features of the objects, museum displays now tend to be more open and
interactive. While this provides an enhanced learning environment for the
visitors, it accelerates the deterioration process of the objects and that is
why conservation and reconstruction is needed more often. We don’t necessarily
destroy what we come to see, but the growing interest in the past has been
causing problems of accessibility, maintenance and authenticity. There are
ethical issues involved in conservation treatments, and the methods of
conservation we use have an effect on the way we interpret the history of the
artifacts. We must now strike a balance between preserving our heritage for the
future, while also using it to interpret the past through display. This can
only be done when we weigh the benefits of exhibiting artifacts with the
ethical and sustainability issues associated with these objects. Although we
might not be able to preserve all the historic items we want to put on display,
it is possible to mitigate their deterioration process by controlling the
environment they are exhibited in. Rather than putting everything out for the
world to see, we must display a selection of items keeping in mind what the
artist or the patron’s intentions might have been.
The collection of historical objects has become
extremely popular in our culture. It brings together a wide variety of people
from different professions for the purpose of recording and saving objects of
sociocultural and historical significance. The tangible past is considered to
be attractive and desirable. Even during the renaissance period, classical
antiquity was clearly distinguishable from and considered superior to the
recent past. Museums research the past and display it for the public for the
purpose of education. Without them, our cultural and scientific understanding
as well as our sense of self would become impoverished. Therefore, the longer
something is preserved for, the longer it can be used to educate people about the
history of mankind.
Research and technological advances now allow us to
see hidden weaknesses in objects such as paintings, and mend old structures
with nondestructive materials. Objects are often treated for the purpose of
reestablishing its structural stability. Cleaning, a common form of conservation,
is often an essential step in stopping different types of chemical and
biological actions such as rusting, and moss growth. Cleaning may also result
in the discovery of previously unknown features of a structure, such as the
vaulted ceiling of the tower at York Minster. Treatment of artwork such as a
painting can reveal the richness of its colours and the artist’s original
intent again.
The treatment or restoration of historical objects
is not always seen under a positive light. In the 1980s, controversy rose
surrounding the cleaning of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. There were divided
opinions about whether the fresco paintings on the ceiling should be cleaned to
bring out their brilliant colours from underneath the candle soot, or be left
alone. ArtWatch, an international regulator group for artwork, opposed to the
cleaning process mainly due to two reasons. Firstly, it is not possible for us
now to ask Michelangelo of his intensions about the outcome of the paintings.
It is imaginable that he might have intended for the colours of his paintings
to turn dark over time. And secondly, by changing the physical composition of
the paintings, we are lying to the audience about its true nature. If the
surface of an ancient copper mirror is cleaned recently, and we don’t disclose
that in the information to the audience, it is almost like telling a lie
because no copper mirror could have lasted this long without losing its
reflective surface.
Museum officials from developed countries often
believe that they are doing a noble job by preserving ancient artifacts as this
ensures the continuous existence of these objects. However, they tend to forget
the fact that the artifacts have existed for a long time without any
intervention and might have lasted even longer if they were not dug up or
removed from their original locations. An example of this would be the removal
of mummies from Egyptian pyramids. They existed for thousands of years without
any intervention from us, and now they have started to crumble in their museum
display cases due to continuous handling and sampling for research. Likewise,
the mummified head of Otokar II, the king of Bohemia, remained in his tomb for
700 years. Ever since it was taken out of the tomb, it has been rapidly
disintegrating due to the drastic changes in its environment.
When conflicts between conservation and display come
up, we often tend to forget the issue of the artist or the patron’s wishes
concerning an artifact or artwork. If we look at the example of the mummies
again, we can logically assume that it wasn’t the pharaohs’ wish to have their
bodies remain in a museum open to the public. This brings about a very severe
ethical concern because we have chosen to disregard the integrity and wishes of
historical figures for the purpose of quenching our own curiosity.
While it is not our intention to destroy what we
come to see, often the acquisition and display of objects can take a toll on
their structural stability, exposing their weaknesses and accelerating their
rate of deterioration. We lose many important historical items every year in
the name of research. Many of the museums today are abandoning their glass
boxes and putting their exhibits in more open spaces closer to the public. This
allows for the visitors to have a more hands-on experience with the objects. However,
the open displays of these objects put them in danger of damage and theft.
Agents of deterioration include many things; some
are caused by biological factors, some mechanical, and others by chemical
processes. The Lascaux Cave was once a very famous tourist destination due to
its wall paintings. However, it has been forced to close down as human breath
was promoting micro-organic decay of the paintings. Mass tourism in places of
heritage also causes erosion of the historic sites.
Physical and mechanical damage to
artifacts are often caused by accidents such as dropping and breaking the
objects during its transportation from one site to another. In 2002, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a
15th century Renaissance marble statue by Tullio Lombardo crashed to the floor
and shattered into pieces due to the faulty base it was placed on top of. Another
mishap happened in the same museum in 2010, when a visitor tripped and fell
damaging a Picasso painting in the process.
Biological deterioration of artifacts is often
caused by micro-organisms, insects and other pests. Animal action such as the
clawing of statues by birds or the deposit of excrement by insects in furniture
can cause gradual but certain damage to the objects. The growths of green
algae, lichen and moss, as well as root action from trees, are continuously weakening
the structure of the Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Mold and fungi use materials such
as paper as a food source and often attack articles such as historical books
and manuscripts at the museums. Insects such as carpet beetles, silverfishes,
and clothes moths destroy organic materials by feeding and excreting on them. Organic
artifacts such as textiles, furniture, leather and taxidermy specimens are
particularly vulnerable. An example of this would be the insect infestation in
the stuffed lobster at the Royal Ontario Museum. Larger pests such as rodents can do the similar
damages. In nature, these organisms are part of the cycle
that returns materials to the earth. They often come into the museum buildings
from outside on the clothing, shoes or bags of the visitors. Once they are
inside the buildings, they are quite hard to eradicate.
Chemical alteration to artifacts may not
always be visible in the early stages of deterioration; however, it is one of
the most severe forms of destruction. Breaking chemical linkages in the
materials cause weaknesses in the structure of the objects and can make them
become brittle. Other consequences of chemical action include color change,
stickiness, cracking, shrinkage and exudation. The objects can become acidic
and as a result, become a threat for the other exhibits in the same display.
One of the biggest chemical deterioration problems for metal objects is
corrosion. Corrosion of metals is a process of returning manmade metal objects
back to its original stable ore form.
Temperature, humidity, pollution,
radiation and light are some other factors that accelerate the deterioration
process of materials. The Most damaging wavelengths of light are around the
blue wavelengths and ultraviolet rays. Constant exposure to light in a museum
setting can create staining, or fading effects. Ivory is quite sensitive to
light. It tends to bleach in bright places while it yellows if left in a dark
environment. Radiation leads to photo-oxidation causing fading of pigments,
weakening of fibers and other materials and yellowing of paper-like elements.
High temperature provides energy causing
higher rates of reaction leading to increased physical deterioration and
biological activity. High temperature can cause a “bloom” effect on the
surfaces of objects, melt or soften plastics, and decrease the strength of some
adhesives. Due to this reason, hot places are very damaging to paper and
plastic materials. On the other hand, low temperature reduces the rate of
reaction; however, it can also cause brittleness or cracks in objects making
them more vulnerable. Famous artifacts often travel around the world, taking
part in different exhibitions, and the worst damage to objects happen due to
them being in environments of fluctuating temperatures, light, and humidity.
Humidity can bring about chemical,
physical, and biological deterioration in objects. Low humidity, often
associated with cold temperatures, can lead to brittleness and greater susceptibility
to damage. Low, high or varying humidity may cause shrinkage, warping or
cracking. At a given humidity level, a material would have a characteristic
moisture content. An unconstraint piece of wood is free to move, however, once
something is created out of it, for example a musical instrument, its movement
and reactions to humidity is limited. This creates stresses within the
structure of the object.
Pollutants that cause harm to artifacts
comprise of elements such as chemicals given off by people, water vapor, dust
particles, chemicals released from industries, gasses naturally present in air
etc. Some specific pollutants that should be avoided in a museum environment
are acetic acid, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, and ozone. These substances
break down bonds and encourage corrosion of certain materials. Dust particles
can sink into a sticky or porous object and can become hard to remove, affecting
the aesthetic value of the object. The particles can also serve as food sources
for insects and attract pest infestation. Concrete dust is acidic and can enter
the objects if any building construction work is done nearby.
If the artifacts were kept sealed in
their original sites, for example inside a tomb or pyramid, they might have had
less exposure to all these factors that affect them in an art gallery or museum
environment. It is quite hard to determine what is more important, keeping
historical objects away from the public eye and preventing them from gaining
knowledge of the past, or excavating all artifacts at the expense of losing
them eventually due to their accelerated deterioration. Taking objects away
from their original sites and changing their composition or structure for
longer preservation has the implication of changing the interpretation of
history. As we must preserve heritage for the future, while
also using it to interpret the past through display, it is essential that we
take every measure possible to strike a balance between them.
The Stone Henge, once easily accessible by the
general public, now has limited access for visitors. The visitors can only see
the structure from a distance, as opposed to being able to touch it like
before. This will reduce the amount of deterioration caused by human
interference while still remaining to be viewable to the public. Likewise, a
fence around vulnerable artifacts at a museum could prevent problems such as
accidents and vandalism.
Items that are very fragile and light
sensitive could be photographed and digitized. Although a photograph does not
have the same effect on our senses that a three dimensional object would have,
a digitized image can reach a larger audience through the internet. If it is
absolutely necessary for the objects to be on display, there are some other
ways we can reduce the effect of light on them. Certain types of glass can
remove the ultraviolet rays coming in, so the objects should be placed in
enclosures made out of this material. Since most museum exhibitions are
indoors, the amount of light can be reduced using window screens or artificial
lighting with lower power light bulbs. An efficient way to arrange displays is
to group objects according to their light sensitivity.
The safest museum environment has a
stable temperature and humidity level; therefore, the heating, ventilation, and
air conditioning systems should always be used to prevent fluctuations in
temperature and humidity from taking place. The use of the ventilation system
and enclosing artifacts in display cases can also greatly reduce the amount of
damage caused by pollutants such as dust particles. Silica gel can be used to
control the humidity in a display, as it absorbs moisture and keeps metals and
organic materials dry. We can’t always implement temperature levels for display
as we must make sure that the temperature is not uncomfortable for the
visitors. However, we can decrease the
temperature in storage areas in order to reduce the rate of deterioration of
some materials.
Often a patina layer appears on the
surface of objects made out of metals such as silver. This process can occur
naturally over many years. A patina is a protective layer that stabilizes the
object by not letting oxygen through. While choosing objects to put on display,
it may be a better idea to exhibit a metal object with patina as it will be
less likely to react in the environment. As patina is a tarnished layer, the
visitors will also get an idea about the material the object is made out of,
and its age. Changes in an artifact don’t always have to be
undesirable; it can be part of its history. What is preserved in corrosion or
other damage can sometimes give useful information, for example textile marks
found on an ancient blade can give us an idea about the type of fabrics the
people used at that time.
Mainly because of the increase in
physical and chemical erosion of structures, there is a new trend of
substituting facsimiles in situ and transferring the original objects to more
stable environments. The visitors are made to understand that the objects they
are seeing are replicas of the original. Examples of this include the replica
of Michelangelo’s David in Florence and the sculpted figures on the Baptistery
of Pisa. This may not be directly equivalent to experiencing the real objects; however,
this process can help preserve original artifacts for a longer period of time
while also reducing the number of theft cases at the site.
The reconstruction of damaged objects has always
been controversial. An object as a whole tells a better story than a few
shattered pieces of the artifact. Since the main aim of a museum is to convey
historical knowledge to the general public, a reconstructed object would be
more functional. For example, rather than displaying pieces of a broken ceramic
vase, it would be more purposeful to reconstruct it with plaster to look a bit
more like its previous form. We must keep in mind though that the
reconstruction process must be reversible. In the past, many conservators have
made the mistake of using adhesives that worked well for some time but later
lost its stickiness and left permanent stains on the artifacts.
It is the moral right of our future
generations to experience all that we are able to experience today. That is why
it is very important to preserve objects of heritage and historical
significance. Museums and art galleries extract artifacts from their original
sites and bring them under one roof to exhibit in front of the general public. These
educational institutions are pulled into constant debate over the conflicts
between preservation and access of artifacts. While they are helping us build a
greater sense of ourselves by getting in touch with our history, some of their
display techniques are also causing damage to very valuable artifacts. All
objects perish over time; our aim now should be to be very vigilant and
decelerate the rate of deterioration of artifacts. Rather than performing
restorations, taking preventive measures will be more efficient for the
continuous existence of our history.
Want to learn more about the preservation and access debate? Take the UofT Conservation course at the Royal Ontario Museum. The best part of the course? You get to touch a real mammoth tusk!
"Tag, You're it!" -Queen Street West, Toronto, 2012
In a multicultural city such as Toronto, the images created by artists of different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds appeal to a wide variety of audience of different ethnicities and languages. With the continuous addition of new graffiti, the face of the street is always changing. In a way, the images on the walls are recording current affairs and pop culture as they happen. As much as personal expression, the graffiti is also a tool for education and a form of social expression in the way it highlights social and political issues. Furthermore, the artwork brightens up areas of space that would otherwise be left dull and dingy.
The TTC system makes these tags, graffiti and murals very accessible to the general public. So stop by Queen Street West one day and soak in the colours of Toronto. My favorite piece of work in the area is a colourful mural painted by the Harbourfront Community Centre, located at the intersection of Vanauley Street and Queen Street West. What’s yours?
"Crave Crawl Cave" -UTAC, Toronto, 2012
On the evening of September 29, 2012, Toronto hosted its Annual Nuit Blanche art festival. On this occasion, the University of Toronto Art Centre showcased the installation Crave Crawl Cave by artists Claro Cosco, Piffin Duvekot and Grey Muldoon. The installation has been previously exhibited at the Monster festival, as well as at the Milton Centre for the Arts.
The all-night exhibit of this interactive art installation consisted of three geodesic tent-like pods connected by tunnels. The circular pods were about a meter in height and the low, narrow tunnels allowed the audience to crawl from one pod to another.
As visitors arrived at the Art Centre, they were encouraged to remove their shoes and enter the pods in order to experience the environment inside. Live music added to the intensity of the experience. The three pods each had a distinct theme. The pod closest to the entrance contained numerous smooth, glowing rubber balls. The middle pod was entirely dedicated to furry objects, be it the rug on the floor, the stuffed toys, or the pieces of materials hung on the ceiling of the pod. The third pod had web like nets hanging from the ceiling and was lit by UV lights which reflected off the painted floor and added an eerie effect.
Duvekot informed me that while coming up with this project, the artists looked at Snoezel rooms in the Netherlands, as well as research done on autism spectrum disorders. Through this installation, the artists tried to create a space that would stimulate the senses. They were successful in achieving their goal because not only did we get to see the art installations but we also got the opportunity to feel different kinds of textures inside the pods. Our senses were further stimulated by the improvised music being played by the musicians. In fact, the electric violin created quite a dramatic atmosphere.
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