Week 4- Anish Kapoor

Celebrated for his gigantic, stainless steel 'Cloud Gate' sculpture in Chicago’s Millennium Park, Anish Kapoor is changing the cultural environment with his public works.

1.Research Kapoor's work in order to discuss the ideas behind 3 quite different works from countries outside New Zealand.
It was really hard to find information on Kapoor's work, but here goes nothing!

Descent Into Lim Kassel, 1992
I'm not too sure what this working is trying to say, but just by looking at it, it reminds me of modern architecture with its square faces and the attitude of 'what you see is what you get'.

The Earth London, 1991
I love the empty space in this installation. It reminds me of the birth of something. I love how the windows allow the light to flow through into the space and reflect off the white walls... just beautiful.

Non Object (Door), Non Object (Pole), Non Object (Vertigo), 2008
This work makes me curious. I feel like wanting to explore the different ways of looking at something through the model. I like the almost hour glass like mirror the most, because of its ability to reflect both the floor and ceiling (< it sounds like it doesn't take much to impress me. lol. T^T)


2.Discuss the large scale site specific work that has been installed on a private site in New Zealand.
Made from steel and fabric, Kapoor's The Farm is a massive outdoor installation. This sculpture is said to be strong enough endure bad weather, but the fanscinating about this piece is that if you looked through one end of each side of the sculpture you would see: Vertical side = the habour, Horizontal side: the vally.

3. Where is the Kapoor's work in New Zealand? What are its form and materials? What are the ideas behind the work?

Kapoor installation is located on a private farm in Kaipara Bay. it kind of looks like a Thankgiving horn , or maybe that's just me. It's made from ellipse shaped steel rings and fabric is PVC Polyester fabric. This massive installation weights a wooping 50,000kgs! Ideas behind the work? Well... yea, about that. I couldn't find thing on themes, but.
Err... To provoke a reaction? It reminded me, about

4. Comment on which work by Kapoor is your favourite, and why.

Sea Mirror

I just thought it was gorgeous! :D I loved everything about it! It's probably because I have quite a lot of great memories of being at the beach as I child, that I have a strong interest to this piece. I love the colours of the beach, green, yellow, blue, whites and having this HUGE MIRROR reflecting all that... I dunno, it just makes me happy.

Week 3 - The Walters Prize 2010

Week 3 - The Walters Prize 2010

1. What is the background to the Walters Prize?
Founded and named by a NZ artist called Gordon Walters. It’s one of the more recognized contemporary art awards where the winner of the prize receives $50, 000 and a trip to the exhibition at the Saatch and Saatch Gallery in New York.

2. List the 4 selected artists for 2010 and briefly describe their work.

It wasn’t to my liking. It was all weird and I kinda felt that I wasn’t really grasping the message.

Dan Arps: Explaining Things
- Mixed media… a.k.a a bunch of CRAP!

Fiona Connor: Something Transparent
- Plastic, Acrylic, wood.

Saskia Leek: Yellow is the Putty of the World
- Oil on board.

Alex Monteith: Passing Manoeuvre with Two Motorcycles and 584 Vehicles
- Two-Channel Video. Shown on Large display screens.

3. Who are the jury members for 2010?
The Jury Members for 2010 are:
Jon Bywater - Programme Leader, Critical Studies at Elam School of Fine Art, The University of Auckland.
Rhana Devenport - Director, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, New Plymouth
Leonhard Emmerling - Visual Arts Adviser, Goethe Institute, Munich, Germany, former Director, ST PAUL St, AUT University
Kate Montgomery - Director, Physics Room, Christchurch

4. Who is the judge for 2010 and what is his position in the art world?
The Judge this year is Vicente Todoli, who once was the director of London's Tate Modern (a well recognized museum for modern art). Vicente Todoli has also directed many exhibitions for many modern artists in the past, making him an idea choice for judge.

5. Who would you nominate for this years Walter's Prize, and why?

Substantiate you answer by outlining the strengths of the artists work. How does this relate to your interests in art? What aspect of their work is successful in your opinion, in terms of ideas, materials and/or installation of the work?

I would choose Saskia Leeks work. It felt quite naïve, but the main reason why I like it was because it reminded me of an old beach house with faded flaking cream walls and the clichéd blue white strip cushions. I doesn’t relate to any of my interests in art, but it reminds me of good memories. I guess the use of soft colours, the yellows, blues purples and whites were quite successful, I think it turned out really well.

Week 2 - Hussein Chalayan

Week 2 - Hussein Chalayan

Hussein Chalayan is an artist and designer, working in film, dress and installation art. Research Chalayan’s work, and then consider these questions in some thoughtful reflective writing.

1. Chalayan’s works in clothing, like Afterwords (2000) and Burka (1996) , are often challenging to both the viewer and the wearer. What are your personal responses to these works? Are Afterwords and Burka fashion, or are they art? What is the difference?
I thought it was a bit awkward when I first saw it, for obvious reasons. It made me feel quite uncomfortable and looked degrading. To be honest I’m not quite sure what separates art and fashion, but they both hold a strong significance, which is expected from genres. One the other hand I would say art, because there is no way women would wear a table/skirt out (ANYWHERE) because of its non-practicality.

Not all clothing is fashion, so what makes fashion fashion?
I don’t know what makes fashion fashion, but I’m thinking something that has a strongly influence on others. If it’s worn by a celebrity or created by a highly recognised designer… it probably would be considered fashion – though sometimes you get ones that look completely outrageous. >.<



Hussein Chalayan, Burka, 1996



Hussein Chalayan, Afterwords, 2000

2. Chalayan has strong links to industry. Pieces like The Level Tunnel (2006) and Repose (2006) are made in collaboration with, and paid for by, commercial business; in these cases, a vodka company and a crystal manufacturer. How does this impact on the nature of Chalayan’s work? Does the meaning of art change when it is used to sell products? Is it still art?
I don’t think it really changes anything. It is still Chalayan’s work. It is still art. Just because a commercial company funded the piece doesn’t make it less of an art piece. And no, I personal don’t think art changes when selling products. Isn’t it all about art/design to help promote the product (regardless if it’s a high or low form of art)?

3. Chalayan’s film Absent Presence screened at the 2005 Venice Biennale. It features the process of caring for worn clothes, and retrieving and analysing the traces of the wearer, in the form of DNA. This work has been influenced by many different art movements; can you think of some, and in what ways they might have inspired Chalayan’s approach?
To be completely honest. I not really sure.
Hussein Chalayan, still from Absent Presence, 2005 (motion picture)
4. Many of Chalayan’s pieces are physically designed and constructed by someone else; for example, sculptor Lone Sigurdsson made some works from Chalayan’s Echoform (1999) and Before Minus Now (2000) fashion ranges. In fashion design this is standard practice, but in art it remains unexpected. Work by artists such as Jackson Pollock hold their value in the fact that he personally made the painting. Contrastingly, Andy Warhol’s pop art was largely produced in a New York collective called The Factory, and many of his silk-screened works were produced by assistants. Contemporarily, Damien Hirst doesn’t personally build his vitrines or preserve the sharks himself. So when and why is it important that the artist personally made the piece?
There are no limits to creativity, however sometimes some ideas; for it to be executed correctly may need the assistance from others. And example of an artist who uses a lot of assistance for his large-scale sculptures would be Richard Serra. However I do think there should be a balance in the artist’s environment which would help contrast his work.