Carsten Höller is
a very intriguing German artist who focuses on creating an experimental setting
for his exhibit goers to put themselves into. His most famous works are
slides constructed as a means of
transportation throughout the floors of the exhibit. Höller believes that
slides make almost everyone happy and yet allow for that loss of control, of
putting yourself in an experiment.
One of his slides series, Left/Right ’10 consisted of two mirrored
slides, one going left and one going right, where the viewer had to
decide. It was about the different
feeling of the slide.
Exhibit goers often have to sign a
waiver that does indicate there might be some serious consequences to his
work. Once series, Light Wall, is
a wall full of lights going on an off at a frequency of 7.8 hertz, that will more likely than not cause problems for an epileptic.
Another reoccurring theme is various of
depictions fly-agaric mushrooms. Known for producing hallucinations, these mushrooms are depicted in many different
ways throughout different series.
Höller really wants the viewer to have
the sense of losing control and discovering something about themselves due to
his artwork, which in reality is a relational concept which might scare the
viewer but also will produce interesting results should the viewer go through
with the experiment.
I really like his concepts about slides and the way viewers can choose to have the experience of using them to move around a gallery space. The sort of interactions he creates for visitors are unusual and unique, especially the opportunity for them to sleep over in a gallery. He almost creates a sort of new environment which could not be experienced otherwise, in a sense creating a stage for audiences to be the actors upon.
ReplyDeleteI found your artist extremely fascinating, yet eccentric/crazy because of some of the works he did (i.e.: "Killing Children")! However, his idea of involving live animals in a gallery space is something I had never heard of before. It was truly impressive to see how he approaches relational aesthetics so distinctively, and how he forms those strong "relations" with his viewers through his work. For instance, the one with the hotel room built inside the gallery is definitively relational, as the viewers get to experience the gallery alone with night, and develop a one-on-one relationship with the work (and also spend a night there!)
ReplyDeleteI just wish there was actual footage (instead of just photographs) of participants spending a night at some of his gallery work (especially the one with deers and mushrooms), just to see how they would react and interact with it.
Anam,
DeleteHere is some, although it isn't as awesome as I think you hope it'll be. Sorry
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTig79gljdc
So artists take folklore and fantasies and put them in a gallery to give permission to viewers to have an experience? Was Gavin Brown right about relational artists and their audiences are people afraid to experience the grit of life? The world is to dangerous to just be in without signing a release! Whoa!
ReplyDeleteQuite interesting that people have to sign a waiver to be able to experience his work. Although he is trying to have that relational aesthetic, it's almost as if he only wants his art to be accessible for those who are already have a different point of view on the world. I get the sense that you don't really like his work, and I think I would have to agree that I don't really like it in the sense that I don't think his relational aesthetic is all that...relational.
ReplyDelete