The Secret Life of Objects- Midway Art

Overall I enjoyed this show and the visit to the gallery. One piece I really liked was "Lonesome Boogie Rattler" by Cameron Jamie. It was an ink drawing of a man mounted on a long piece of wood. I was instantly attracted to it because ink is my favorite medium to work in, and I liked the character in the drawing. The use of contour lines to describe the whole image was nice and the messiness really adds interest. It took me a while to understand what was happening in the picture, the title helped to explain. The face is divided and is shown facing both left and right. I believe the piece is about a person who has a cold. Inside the ribcage there is heavy squiggly lines, which could be congestion. Then the neck is shaped like a volcano, which is exploding dark black ink up into the face, like a sneeze. Finally what I assume is snot is shown to have come out of the nose, with a line leading to it to show direction. I initially liked it for its appearance, but after figuring out what was happening in it, I liked it more.

A piece that I did not really like or understand was "Sound" by John McCracken. It is a very tall blue rectangle with a mirror-like surface. In general I'm not usually attracted to solidProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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C one color, geometric pieces. With this piece the title didn't necessarily add to my understanding. I thought about it for a long time, but still could not understand the connection. The simplicity is almost a little frustrating for me because when I don't understand a piece, I at least like to appreciate it for it's design. With this piece there is nothing that keeps my attention, other than wondering what it means.

Installation

At first glance the only similarity in the pieces is the general layout, they are both pages of text. The first is a page of decorated poetry from India (1569). It has poetry centered on it with a border of beautiful flowers painted around it. This type of poetry with fanciful designs was very popular during the Mughal Dynasty. The second piece is a page out of "A Humument" (1977) by Tom Phillips. He created the book by using a preexisting novel. He used a cross-out form of poetry leaving only the words he wished to use and covered the rest in art. A Humument comes from the books original title "A Human Document" or, A (Hum)an Doc(ument). Both pieces are very colorfully designed and when placed side by side their colors would play off each other. They both have bold reds, greens, and light blues. Where they differ is in language. The first is a language many people may not be able to read, so it can only be appreciated for it's beauty. The other is in English and can be read by more people. The ability to read the text adds another layer to it. It may explain the background, where the other piece can not. Unfortunately I can't read the type in the picture I took and wasn't able to find another source with the image, but through research on the book, I am assuming it is some idea on life, and makes you stop to think. "wanted. a little white/opening out of thought." is a quote from another piece in the book. When put together as an installation they would first seem aesthically attractive, but when read, the Phillips piece would also leave you with an abstract thought to ponder.
Source: http://humument.com/intro.html

Postmodernist Review

The piece I reviewed is called "Ritual" by Stephanie Hunder. I saw it at the Concordia Art Gallery. It is a vertical piece with different blues, reds, and purples in the background and white images on top. In the background you see a lace pattern to the right and a human ribcage to the left. Over these are two oval objects that appear to be eggs. The top egg holds a recognizable bird shape laying on its back. It is surrounded with swirled lines to show the fluid within it. The bottom egg shows a curled larger bird with a distinguished claw and wing. The artist could be commenting on the ritual of life, showing the growth of the bird as well as the skeletal ribcage. The ribs may also represent life within a human because our lungs are essential to survival. The bottom bird looks ready to be born so it symbolizes the beginning of life. The lace curtain looks as if it is moving in the wind and could symbolize the ending of life, the soul blowing away. Overall the title Ritual may mean the constant beginning and ending of life.

Hello this is Kate McDonough.