▽ INHOSPITABLE LANDSCAPE @ WCS

Inhospitable Landscape brings the outside, inside with its large-scale installation, which entirely consumes the exhibition space. In a reaction against the biennial’s theme of Hospitality it explores the uncomfortable and inhospitable facets of social and cultural landscapes. Upon entering the space, notions of fairytales and literature pervaded my mind; an abundance of small trees and foliage adorn the dimly lit space. Fallen leaves and earth cover the ground. Video installations are dotted ambiguously throughout the greenery, suggesting a juxtaposition of technology and nature, or the artificial and the natural. As the viewer meanders through the disarray of branches and foliage, eventually reaching the back of the exhibition space they come to a rather interesting area that could almost be an allusion to the renowned tea party scene within Alice and Wonderland - a long dinning-room table, lamp and chair fill this area. I found this area particularly entrancing – there was something both haunting and beautiful about it; the light produces a particularly seductive effect through the trees when one is relatively distant from it. What was most strange was that there was something almost vaguely familiar about the piece; I knew I had seen it somewhere before, in a film perhaps. It seems somewhat possible, however, that it had resonated with something, which had long before existed within my imagination but I have, until present, been significantly aware of.

What is also worth mentioning is the music that accompanied the piece. It was very mystical and atmospheric sounding. It therefore adhered stylistically to the visual aspect of the piece and consequentially became integral to it. Though I thought the video installations, which were distributed throughout the piece, looked extremely effective and emphasised the atmospheric feel of the piece, I was honestly quite reluctant to notice them, as I have come across far too many video installations throughout the duration of this biennial. Most of the video installations I have seen tend to be constructed from randomised images that play in loops, which seem to lack any degree of narrative or story telling. However, the video installations within this piece were not the complete work, they were only a small part of it; therefore, they did not ruin my experience by any measure.

Interestingly, the exhibition has its own ‘inhospitable library’, which is made up of books that inspired the curators during the production of the exhibition. Visitors can borrow a book from the library for a small cost, which in turn denotes the interactive nature of the exhibition even further. Being able to interact with the piece and to tangibly experience it creates a more memorable experience, whether it be good or bad. Getting tangled and caught within branches and foliage may have been an irritating experience to some of my peers, but this kind of physical contact with art undoubtedly leaves a lasting impression on the viewer.

I was actually rather reluctant to leave the space, and interestingly, others were too. It is possible that the space recalled a part of our childhoods that growing into adults we have albeit lost touch with – a space that captures the imagination, which lacks the systematic and authoritative atmosphere of the typical established gallery space. Thus, it may be that utilising exhibition spaces in creative ways may be the key to engaging audiences more competently, as this certainly proved the case amongst my peers and myself during this exhibition visit.

▽ BLOOMBERG NEW CONTEMPORARIES @ COPPERAS HILL

Bloomberg New Contemporaries is the UK’s principal organisation for supporting new, emerging talent from British art schools. Interestingly, their exhibition during this year’s biennial is hosted in the Copperas Hill building, a large abandoned sorting office, open to the public for the very first time. During my visit curator and selector of the exhibition Rosalind Nashashibi provided a guided tour and some interesting behind-the-scenes information regarding the selection process and curatorial approach.  It was great to meet someone integral to the production of the exhibition such as Rosalind who could answer questions, and provide a bit of background information, as though I was vaguely familiar with it, I had not before visited the exhibition.

Much of this biennial site’s appeal, aside from the exhibiting art, was being able enter a space that was not before open to the public. My curiosities were certainly fulfilled upon entering the building due to its evident vastness, and even more so when I entered the exhibition space. There were, in fact, times when I felt more drawn to the left over relics of the sorting office than the art itself, which I suppose, in theory is quite detrimental on the part of the exhibition, but nevertheless, I think it was interesting being able to juxtapose the space with the exhibiting art. The exhibition space, however, had a rough, gritty feel about it  - it had not been altered or changed since its use as a sorting office. However, I felt its inherent grittiness and raw, industrial feel significantly complemented the cutting edge contemporary art that was displayed within it.  It was also a nice change to see art presented in an interior space that is not a gallery or museum, as it really did transform the overall experience. I did not get the sense of control and authority that one usually gets when they enter a gallery or museum space – it felt much more laid-back and informal, which made it much easier to enjoy the art.  The only problematic attribute of the exhibition space was its flooring; being slightly slopped and quite bumpy it did not provide the best of surfaces for sculptural pieces.  Nevertheless, its vast scale must have given the curators a delightful array of possibilities in terms of displaying works.

Circumspects, a video piece by George Eksts was a notable work that Rosalind regarded within her tour of the exhibition.  The focus on architectural space within the video recalled back to many other pieces I have come across within the biennial. It seems that many artists are investigating architectural spaces and how they affect us both physically and psychologically.  The large architectural structure that is central to Eksts’s piece reminded me a lot of the Dan Graham piece that is currently residing outside of the Bluecoat chambers. With its circularity and its allowing of the viewer to voyeuristically look into a space I felt it reflected Grahams piece to an evident degree.  The video is looped and thus denotes an incessant sense of movement and dynamicity that ceases to end. It as though Eksts portrays a plane outside of time and space, where there is only permanency and no sense of transition.  

It was not only the left over features of the sorting office that at times took my attention away from the art – I was particularly interested in the exhibition’s curatorial approach. I was intrigued as to how the curators had utilised such a vast, innovative space alternate to that of a gallery or museum, and whether the space was detrimental or beneficial to their practice.  When I questioned Rosalind on the curatorial approach of the exhibition her response denoted that aesthetic value had primarily dictated it – the main concern was to make the pieces look eye catching. What was not desired was to take attention away from smaller or subtler pieces by placing them next to more larger or audacious ones.  Medium was also considered in regards to the curatorial approach, as projections and some video installations would require their own cut-off spaces or rooms.  I did feel quite disappointed when I heard of the concept behind the curatorial approach, as I am more partial to concepts dictating the curation, as opposed to mere aesthetic matters. I was also keen to ask Rosalind if there were any pieces within the exhibition that she felt did not translate well into the space.  She suggested that all of the pieces had translated well, apart from the two video pieces by Simon Senn, as she thought they were placed too close together, and this had apparently caused a common misconception amongst visitors that they were one piece. 

Though I felt somewhat more occupied with the curation of the exhibition and the fact that it resided in a space unorthodox to typical art exhibitions, the exhibiting works still took my interests.  I particularly favored the many video instillations within the exhibition, as they brought a laudable sense of movement and dynamicity to a space that had long before been dead and desolate - abandoned and still. They thus provided a warm reminder that art and culture can provide a new lease of life to public areas and spaces that initially appear barren and uncultivable.