I had a bit of a snipe recently about the layout of the Rita Angus exhibition. What I didn’t mention was the reasoning for that layout. Again I refer to Bronwyn lloyd.
“Rita Angus’s own description of the ideal way to present her art has determined the structure of the ‘Rita Angus Life & Vision’ exhibition, beautifully curated by Jill Trevelyan and William McAloon. Angus’s friend John Money recalled that she imagined her work displayed as a ‘kind of temple of art’ with her three Goddess paintings at the centre surrounded by a series of small chapels containing smaller paintings and watercolours related one to the other.”
On reflection and when I put aside my personal aversion to mazes (a true but long story) I am reminded of the film Being John Malkovich where apuppeteer discovers a door in his office which turns out to be a portal that allows him to enter the mind and life of John Malkovich. So maybe my discomfort with the exhibition design was that we were being led into Rita Angus’s imagination? I have enough trouble with my own mind without going on trip into anyone else’s.
This week the main art in my life has been dance with my 5-year-old in her first ballet show. It all seems a bit intenseto me, and I encountered for the first time the monster they call “stage-mother” (no – not me). I was wondering if there is a visual art equivalent and then recalled some stories about Thelma Clairmont, so I guess the answer to that is “yes”.
Picasso Curtain for the Diaghilev Ballet Le Train Bleu*
Following on from my post on McCahon’s Victory Over Death, it was pointed out I made little mention of style, technique etc. Although I am even less qualified to discuss that, I may look at it in a future post. One thing I did think of was that if it was painted in house paint, then wiping the vegemite off wouldn’t be too big a problem.
*Ballerinas actually appear to be much smaller in real life – don’t get me started on impossible body images and dance though
“One thing I did think of was that if it was painted in house paint, then wiping the vegemite off wouldn’t be too big a problem.”
Hehe, I love this, wry, yet kind.
Picasso’s technique is vitally important to his work. I have some posters, yet I would dearly love to get up front and close to Picasso’s work.
He was a formidable drawer and anatomist. He was also a Master engraver, straight to plate (copper usually), this is enormously difficult and requires great confidence.
[…] did a VERY quick run through because the crowd inside Rita’s imagination was a bit much for me today. Oddly the ’seasick green’ room was quite soothing because […]
[…] of the Te Papa exhibition and I thought that made it much sharper in general. I also preferred the layout in constrast to Te Papa, although maybe it was a little too loose and as it wasn’t divided into the same […]
[…] arrangement of the Te Papa exhibition was around this pretext(from Bronwyn […]