Brian Sewell once scathingly wrote that at your average private view only about 3 people come along to look at the art. The rest are there for the wine and the chit chat. It’s true, but I disagree that it’s a bad thing. Wine is the perfect lubricant for the business of engaging with the pervasive mediocrity of a degree show. When you have a couple of glasses of wine, all of the earnestness and blandess becomes endearing rather than annoying.
So imagine my shock when I discovered that there was no wine at all at the Glasgow School of Art degree show, only bland, fizzy, lukewarm lager. Some of us don’t like lager! Worst of all, they actually ran out of the stuff well before 9pm. Why not charge a nominal fee - say £1 per glass of wine? It would easily cover the costs. Perhaps they were denying drink to discourage Sewell’s art liggers from taking over, or at least to get them to focus on the art, which is what I was forced to do.
What I found was that the state of art at GSA (and presumably across the country) is incredibly boring. Gone is the playfulness of the YBA years, when everyone attempted nihilistic jokes on visual culture. Now all you have is walls and walls of dullness. Obviously, this being the art world, you’re not allowed to make anything that is actually beautiful. That would be too bourgeois. But it seems that aren’t even allowed the pleasure of making something that is ugly, vulgar, and exciting. Dullness reigns. Dull paintings, dull sculptures, dull photos . . .
There were, however, a few diamonds in the rough:
Silja Leifsdottir — an Icelandic artist whose show ‘It’s easier to let go if you forget about gravity’ was a brilliantly witty mix of photography, sound and sculpture. I even went so far as to buy one of her books (see the still at the top of this post). She asked me if I wanted her to sign it for me. I said that I don’t really go in for the whole signing thing. She looked offended, so instead I got her to write me a note. I told her that hers was an art that came up to the viewer and gave them a playful (yet still quite painful) pinch on the arm. There is surely no higher praise than that.
In visual communication (ie Graphic Design), I was particularly impressed by Clemence Cocquet, whose film posters of French nouvelle vague classics were ravishing, and Victoria Kastenbauer, whose illustrated books were engaging and amusing.
All three showed professional mastery without ever sacrificing wit or excitement. They appeared to understand that it is not just the art that is being shown — it is the whole package. Everything from your card, to your display, to your ways of hanging contribute to the overall impression.
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Leave a Reply