tony
the gallery that i co-run has prob the best show we will see in adelaide this year running @ the moment: tony schwensen, a sydney based video artist that reminds me of vitto acconci (possibly a lazy association seeing as one of his works is titled as a homage)... possibly guy ben nir as well...
why is this show so good:
1. i've seen the programs of most of the other galleries for this year and they look pretty mundane @ best.
2. the work is well thought out \ resolved and the 2 spaces are cohesively linked.
3. the videos are long... how is that good? video art needs a hook and often relies on a cheap gag and or a brief expression that relies heavily on the title to simply express something that lasts longer than anyone will actually spend with the work. but with tony's, the longer you watch, the more you will gain. formally they are resolved and there is a mediative quality to the work that save them from being disastrously boring.
this is where tony's 'uniform' is important; this uniform includes a pair of grey shorts, silver dollar nipples, shaved head and strangely orange skin (prob a side effect of the camera). this locates the work as a space for artistic action.
4. there is a sense of play within a formula, even if it is merely using different camera angles.
the resolve and cohesion of the artists' vision is conveyed through the courage to even begin the work (when this territory has been well explored by many others - esp in the 60's - aka acconci). all the loose ends are tied and having a couple of the objects from the performance present with the videos gives a physicality to the screen.
this work is obviously from a practice that has been made from a place where the artist has considered, resolved and distinguished a position to work from. i know that that is just a simple thing that all artists should do - but it is something that adelaide artists consistently fail - whether it be due to laziness, ingenuine attitudes, lack of experience, lack of peers, history and the presence of good art collections and large galleries. perhaps it is merely a result of the provincial position from which we work.
i do not have enough of a historical knowledge to challenge the work any further, but it rests well in its position and contemporary arts' inclination towards the past. but anyway, tony is doing well on the east coast and deserves everything he gets.
oh, and make sure you spend some time with the work!
why is this show so good:
1. i've seen the programs of most of the other galleries for this year and they look pretty mundane @ best.
2. the work is well thought out \ resolved and the 2 spaces are cohesively linked.
3. the videos are long... how is that good? video art needs a hook and often relies on a cheap gag and or a brief expression that relies heavily on the title to simply express something that lasts longer than anyone will actually spend with the work. but with tony's, the longer you watch, the more you will gain. formally they are resolved and there is a mediative quality to the work that save them from being disastrously boring.
this is where tony's 'uniform' is important; this uniform includes a pair of grey shorts, silver dollar nipples, shaved head and strangely orange skin (prob a side effect of the camera). this locates the work as a space for artistic action.
4. there is a sense of play within a formula, even if it is merely using different camera angles.
the resolve and cohesion of the artists' vision is conveyed through the courage to even begin the work (when this territory has been well explored by many others - esp in the 60's - aka acconci). all the loose ends are tied and having a couple of the objects from the performance present with the videos gives a physicality to the screen.
this work is obviously from a practice that has been made from a place where the artist has considered, resolved and distinguished a position to work from. i know that that is just a simple thing that all artists should do - but it is something that adelaide artists consistently fail - whether it be due to laziness, ingenuine attitudes, lack of experience, lack of peers, history and the presence of good art collections and large galleries. perhaps it is merely a result of the provincial position from which we work.
i do not have enough of a historical knowledge to challenge the work any further, but it rests well in its position and contemporary arts' inclination towards the past. but anyway, tony is doing well on the east coast and deserves everything he gets.
oh, and make sure you spend some time with the work!
Labels: exhibitions
posted by mark at 5:28 AM
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