A giant multimedia installation, a painted canvas hanging on a wall and/or an iPad tour, this is what’s happening at the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Gallery One exhibit. Gallery One is the most ambitious display that brings together traditional art and technology to the forefront. I applaud the museum for creating this exhibit for all to experience what’s new in technology, but more important learning about art in a new, 21st century way.
Gallery One opened to the public on January 21st, Martin Luther King Day where I had the privilege to volunteer. Because of the holiday there were so many people that the museum needed to distribute timed tickets. Gallery One I can see is going to be a popular destination. What can I say, it was very well attended?
Right after my shift, I had the opportunity to look around and engage with the many large kiosk screens to learn more about 20th century paintings and sculpture. One of my favorite pieces is Viktor Schreckengost’s “Jazz Bowl” – vibrant blue hue where he illustrated jazz inspired scenes. Through one of his talks, I found out how much he enjoyed playing the saxophone. What this kiosk did was teach me more about the artist, and what other artists inspired him. Additionally, the kiosk asked you if you want to draw a line; the line that you draw is layered onto a piece of art that is inspired by this line. What was amazing through this robust interactivity, it gave me a new outlet into the brilliant minds of artists.
There are different kiosk stations where you learn different things. One station features contemporary art where you can paint a canvas using a few different techniques such as Jason Pollock – paint dripping method. Not only can you paint using artists contemporary options but you can email your creation to yourself. I spent so much time creating “the perfect piece” – a good balance of color and spacial relationships. What I learned is that painting using contemporary methods is not easy - every artist is unique by how he uses paint (layering, using a pallet knife, dripping, wide strokes, or adding other items such as wallpaper or newspaper in creating a collage). Lastly, what is the artist trying to say? What did they learn by experimenting with new techniques?
The last station I visited was creating a clay sculpture. That was fun but it was limiting, which is my only objection - the tactility of clay. However, the goal of the piece was to try to create a warrior God and the program gave the participant all the tools to do that. Don’t get me wrong, it was remarkable what this program can do.
The other aspect of the exhibit I liked was seeing the actual piece exhibited in the show such as Jason Pollock, Schrengost’s Jazz Bowl and tapestries for some of us who just want to see the art. Then, the computerized kiosk was a tool to experience more. I was very impressed.
The museum created a specialized mobile app, “ArtLens” where you hold up an iPad and the app has the capability to deliver audio and video segments about various art pieces throughout the museum. What an educational milestone (tool) that will give museum goers a remarkable, memorable experience. I have yet to experience the iPad but if you don’t have one, the museum makes this available to you at a nominal cost.
The iPad and these endless apps that are being generated is the wave of the future, for sure. There is an app to log in your steps, loose weight, level a picture frame, and the list goes on and on. My head hurts by thinking about where this technology will lead us in the near future - controlling our home temperatures and t.v. sets, garage doors and tire pressures. As a person who uses social media, specifically twitter, and as a graphic professional, that uses Adobe Photoshop to clean up deficient photographs; this program can make any photo pristine. Many times I walk past a photograph and I wonder if this image was the artists original capture or was it adjusted by using Photoshop?
As I’ve walked through many exhibits where artists display video, and multimedia installations, where I’ve understood some and some I just didn’t feel like watching. I can definitely appreciate the art. And thinking that all forms of technology is here to stay.
Do I love it 24/7? Not necessarily. I am old fashioned in certain respects where I enjoy looking at black and white photographs that weren’t altered. The photographer hit the shutter and developed it by dipping photo paper into a chemical bath. A painter bought a canvas, stretched it and squeezed a bunch of paint onto a glass panel and began his painting. There was no editing, you paint and sometimes the mistake became the genius of the piece.
I sit here and write on a computer where I can edit as I go. Do I loose some of my creativity by editing this that couldn’t be done on an old fashioned typewriter? Maybe, maybe not but one thing is clear that learning goes on whether it’s drawing by a crayon or iPad. I think you owe it to yourself to experience all of the technology you can get your hands on, then edit what you enjoy or pass it by.
If you love art, technology and the Cleveland Museum of Art, definitely check out the new Gallery One.
Gallery One
http://www.clevelandart.org/galleryone
Cleveland.com - ArtLens
http://www.cleveland.com/arts/index.ssf/2013/01/artlens_app_at_the_cleveland_m.html
No comments:
Post a Comment