While in Boston last weekend, I stumbled upon an exhibition of Moyra Davey's photos.
I liked them because
1) The title of the show reminds me of a noodle house, and of a fluorescent light bulb.
2) The subjects tend to be completely mundane. Lots of them were pictures of DUST. Like, closeups of dustbunnies in corners, or a big ol' wad of dust stuck to a dog's paw. That reminded me of learning in freshman biology class that dust is mostly made up of human skin cells and hair, and possibly fallen matter from dead stars. That last part I think I made up or read in a Robert Fulghum book.
In the same class I learned about COHESION, which is the property that makes water molecules stick to each other and form one body, instead of bouncing around like a bunch of tiny water marbles. This is the same property that allows your cornea to adhere to your eyeball--with no stitches or anything--after it's been shaved off for laser surgery. The cornea just clings on there for dear life all by itself until it heals, thanks to cohesion.
3) Her photos are fragmentary, which is something I like in collages and lists and lyric poems. She has a bunch of series or "groupings" that make more sense together than individually. Or, rather, you take in the individual stills and your brain makes a story out of them because that's what brains like to do: order information. For example, one could look at a sampling of magazine covers and come to the conclusion that Britney Spears is crazy, while someone else could look at the same covers and decide that she's crazy and knocked up and strung out on drugs. To each brain its own.
4)Her photos provided an all new art medium for B Dub to assess with the words, "I could've done that." Until now, this dismissal was reserved for painters like Jackson Pollack or Mark Rothko.
7 comments:
I wish I could have been with you. Exhibits like this are always more fun to take in with you by my side, as you always have intelligent remarks and questions, as was just demonstrated.
Can't wait to peruse her site, though. But I still wish you were sitting next to me.
Love them all! Thanks for introducing yet another wonderful photographer! And, yes, you have perfect remarks. You should have people pay you to show them around the art world. I'd do it.
Haha--thanks ladies. I actually consider myself pretty art-illiterate. This just happened to jive with things I was already thinking about. Isn't it nice when you see art like that? It's quite...validating.
I learn some interesting things when I read your posts. I like that dust comes from the stars! It is better to think of it that way than to know it comes from dead skin!
Cohesion. Wow. Laser surgery has always freaked me out for the whole cornea reason. Plus, I just think glasses make everybody seem smart and sophisticated. It would be a shame to see them go by the wayside.
Lane, I just LOVE your blog because it makes me feel a little more educated every time!
I have had such an eagerness lately to explore the world of art, which is something I have seriously neglected in my life. I'm starting to appreciate the thought-provoking nature of art, rather than the aesthetics only, which you further clarified for me so well! I have always loved photography so much.
I totally relate to what you said in your reply comment about this art exhibit jiving with what has been on your mind. I just love when that happens. I feel like the universe is offering me a little reward for my inquiries, and I imagine all these little lights in my brain flickering happily as all these ideas come together and make sense. It's so very exciting! :)
I definitely could have done that.
- The Artist formerly known as Subway Love.
Post a Comment