Taking my time

These are some momentos from the Olafur Eliasson show at the MOMA. Leo thinks I only liked it so much because it was novel. and it is totally novel, but so spectacular. I was totally wowed.
In the pieces that deals with installations, where the artist tries to transform the space and environment, the artist usually have to invest quite a bit to convince the viewer that they're not where they think they are anymore. When this doesn't happen, things seem sloppy and just half assed. By using the role of light and having that take center stage, Eliasson cleverly makes this happen. The outcome is that, instead of seeing the show, you really get to experience it.
Under it, I felt as if I glowed along with the light. I felt as if I was being warmly tucked into bed by a blanket of sepia in the lighted hallway. It is the first thing that holds you when you hit that floor. Once you are under that yellow light, everyone and every thing around you looks like a sepia toned movie. Everything seems slowed down, and everyone became monochrome! He is directly changing our perception and the way we look for just a moment through these lights.
Moving further along, He placed these bright studio lamps in strategic angles. We are pretty familiar with the idea of fashion and modeling in popular culture. Also,we are pretty vain beings. Because of these things, viewers needed no invitation to step into the spotlight where the intense light is shining onto them at different angles at different stations. Naturally, everyone took out a camera and snapped away. As people stepped into the spotlight and in front of the mirror, they are the only ones being seen. While the spotlight isolated those in it, it also made everything else in the room closer together. As we stood in the dark looking at the ordinary people portrayed under that spotlight, we were transformed into a more intimate place.
Moving along, you come to the center of a doughnut hole of white fabric walls. The walls glowed and shimmered from one color smoothly to the next. Standing there, you felt as if you were being wrapped up and coiled gently from color to color. it was really a comforting and nurturing experience.

Although not the same can be said for the Colors show on the top floor. It was just hideous and boring. shitty shit shit. However, while we were up there, we had the unique opportunity to witness the random destruction of art. One of Dan Flavin's fluorescent light bulbs exploded sending a state of panic and shock. That should have been a performance piece on its own. Through it, you can throughly see the politics of the art museum. The show as a whole is completely irreverent, and just plain boring. It started out with the Duchamp painting "Tu m'", arguing that color is a ready-made in itself. ok! clever. cute. I liked it. However, as it goes on, it seemed to be a huge collection of works about nothing but color, with color on it. By the end of the show, I was pretty solid on the Crayola. Which leaves me wondering, why would anyone pay to look at Depot paint swatches when they have a far better selection on the streets of Jackson Heights?