Comments on: Competing Relationships: Art, Money and the Power of Time and Space http://bordertalksblog.com/2008/04/23/a-few-observations-on-the-whitney-biennial-and-art-money/ BorderTalksBlog: An Arts & Cultural Forum Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:26:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: edwardmiller http://bordertalksblog.com/2008/04/23/a-few-observations-on-the-whitney-biennial-and-art-money/#comment-73 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:07:05 +0000 http://bordertalks.wordpress.com/?p=146#comment-73 I ventured out to the Whitney Biennial on a rainy Sunday. Even though I was worried about the crowds due to the weather and the day, the museum was relatively empty and it was always possible to find room that allowed for interaction with the artwork and quiet discussion with my companion.

I think I’ve been to every Biennial since 1992. This year’s visit might have been the most enjoyable experience. The tone of the artwork was more contemplative and less in your face (“this is the representation of my identity, I’m angry, deal with it”), more concerned with aesthetics and expression and less self-involved. Painting and photography were scarce, installation and video art was everywhere. Also notably absent was art placed or made on computers, so there was even something retro about the event.

The Biennial in fact might be moving in the direction that Malin Abrahamsson recommends. There were less artists than previous years and many artists were provided with small rooms or corners and asked to make new pieces specific to that space (I’m not sure if they were funded). There should be even less artists and more new work. Too many of this year’s artists were already recognizable to me (Sherrie Levine again? more John Baldessari?)—the curators should take the time to find emerging artists from diverse American locales in order to support their careers. Also, the show did not feel reflective of its historical moment—the American people have arguably moved further to the Left than any time since the Depression and we finally have a woman and a black man running for President. The show felt reflective of trends within the artworld and failed in large part to respond to the state of the nation. The inclusion of Spike Lee’s film about New Orleans (already shown on HBO and in cinemas) stood out for its overt politics but even so it would have been good to hear from a less established artist, and possibly one from New Orleans or the Gulf Coast.

There were many memorable pieces included in the show. One has particular relevance to this blog: Amie Siegal’s “Stills from DDR/DDR”—a great meditation on the remaining cleft between East and West, especially within the psyches of the citizenry of a “reunited” Germany.

]]> By: Beth http://bordertalksblog.com/2008/04/23/a-few-observations-on-the-whitney-biennial-and-art-money/#comment-50 Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:13:50 +0000 http://bordertalks.wordpress.com/?p=146#comment-50 You’ve begun an interesting conversation, Malin.
Before commenting on your proposal for a bienniale model that focuses on a smaller group of artists, let’s step back and consider a threshhold question:

What is the most important goal of a bienniale exhibit?
… and/or a related question…
What is the curator’s/museum’s chief responsibility in presenting a biennial exhibit?

(Based on the flow of your comments, may we agree that this question assumes that the bienniale presenter is an arts institution such as the Whitney.)

I look forward to your comments, and to those of any other readers of Border Talks.

]]>